Chance Encounters

"Shhh," Mirajane giggled as she unlocked the backdoor of her house. "You have to be quiet. I live with Lisanna and Elf, you know."

The Thunder God only grunted, still holding her around the middle, nuzzling his head into her neck while he was at it. "I am so hor-"

"Laxus," she complained, finally getting the door open. "And hey, ew, gross. I've been at work, like, all day."

"Mmmm…don't care."

"Well, I do. I need to go freshen up some."

"Mira," he complained. "I-"

"It'll be real quick." She slipped out of his grasp when they made it into the house, just so happening to be in the kitchen. "Tell you what; you make a snack or something and I'll be right back to get you. Just give me a minute, alright? And please, whatever you do, don't wake up Elfman or Lisanna."

"Trust me," he grumbled, heading over to the fridge to find some lunchmeat or something. "I don't wanna."

Mirajane headed off then and Laxus went to work on his food. He was also trying to figure out how he was going to manage with the demon that night and not make any noise at all.

It had been one of her rules.

"Mira," he'd complained that night as he sat with her up at the guild, after close as she went around cleaning up. "I'm tired of going to my apartment. I wanna screw you in your bed."

"You have such a way with words."

"Mir-"

"What difference does it make?"

"I dunno," he said. "Just that, you know, when you come over to my place, you're always critiquing it."

"I am not."

"Yes, you are. You're always complaining about things."

"Name me one-"

"You get mad that I have underwear strewn across the floor."

"Because it's gross."

"And my towels are never adequate."

"Towels? Don't you mean towel?"

"It is just me that lives there. Why would I need more than one?"

"Not to mention," she went on as she counted out the jewels for the day. "You never wash it. It smells horrible. And-"

"Gee, for someone that was so adamant that they don't critique, you sure are sounding pretty damn critical here, Mir."

That made her stop. Then, with a huff, she merely said, "Fine, Laxus."

"Fine?"

"Fine. We can go to my house tonight," she said. "But I don't live alone. We're going to have to be quiet. Even just when we come in. Or if you get up in the middle of the night. Quiet. I don't like taking men around the house."

Scoff. "I'm not just some man, Mirajane. I'm the man. I'm your man."

"Uh-huh."

Snarl. "So what? You have other men?"

"Mmmm."

"You're annoying me, demon."

"The point is, Laxus, that I don't…entertain at the house often. It's awkward, you know? So you're going to have to get up early and shower before they get up. Around six? Okay? Either that or stay in my room until they leave for the day."

"No fair. You ain't even gonna make me breakfast?"

"Laxus-"

"How big is your bed anyhow?"

"What difference-"

"Am I going to be comfortable?"

That got him another look. "You know, I'm not the one trying to sell you on staying the night at my place. One of my favorite dresses is at yours and I would totally be fine with staying the night there. You're the one being all weird."

"Well-"

"And that reminds me," Mira said, going back to counting the jewels in her hands. "No weird stuff tonight."

"Weird stuff?"

"You know what I'm talking about."

He leaned against the bar. "Think you're going to have to detail exactly what's on the table tonight."

"Nothing," she told him. "Except…you know. Just… Nothing weird."

"I don't do anything weird. I do very sexy-"

"Nothing sexy."

"Mira-"

"Nothing… I'm serious, Laxus, I would die if they found out that I had a man over. Lisanna would…and Elf…and… You know what? Never mind. Night's off. You can't come."

"Demon-"

"No. It's gross and awkward and stupid. One night when Lisanna and Elf are out on a job you can come over and-"

"Please?"

"Laxus-"

"You can just blow me and then I'll go to bed."

She blinked. Then she rolled her eyes. "You're really on my nerves today."

Taking a sip of the beer in front of him, he said, "Nothing weird."

"Promise?"

"Promise." He snickered. "I have the ears of a dragon, remember? I would hear if they were, like, awake or something. Besides, it can be more fun this way, yeah? Kinda like we're sneaking around or something."

"Or something," Mira sighed.

As he was standing there though, in Mirajane's kitchen, another problem hit him. He was just over at the fridge, smelling some slices of ham, to see if they were still good, when a different scent hit him.

Freed?

No. Not at all.

Bickslow?

No. A little, but…

Ever?

Maybe. Yet…that couldn't be right.

He sniffed his arm. He had their scents all over him, after all, because they were, of course, all over him constantly. That was what he smelled.

Right?

Duh.

Shaking it off, he went back to making his snack.

"Laxus?" Mira was back in no time flat, wearing something far more revealing than the dress she had on before. Enough to get Laxus' attention, at least. "You ready?"

"Mmmm," he grunted, seated at the kitchen table with his sandwich. "Can I just, like, take you on the counter? So hot."

"I said nothing weird."

"That's not weird."

"And be quiet." Then she was gesturing to him. "Come on."

And…well…

Anyhow, the night was pretty good.

But not weird.

Kinda sexy. And hot. And, yeah, it was Mirajane and, well, him, so there had been no doubt about that from the beginning.

It was what happened later, after Mira had drifted off and Laxus was laying there, planning out the next day in his head (workout, lunch, workout, snack, dinner, workout, have sex with Mira sounded good, but, ooh, so did, sex, more sex, lunch, snack, workout, dinner, sex, more snacks did too; decisions, decisions), that ruined everything.

His stomach growled.

Which was normal for him. Laxus whole life was just one big workout session, really. Other than the time that he allotted for Mirajane, the Thunder Legion (begrudgingly at times) and jobs. The rest was him pushing his limits time and time again.

He was gunning for a spot as a wizard saint, but hey, even if they didn't recognize him, he knew he was one.

He was the one.

The only one.

Had he mentioned that he was the greatest wizard to ever walk the fucking earth?

No?

Really? He usually didn't go at least one hour without thinking about it.

After snuggling and kissing the demon a little, for which he was rewarded with a bat at the face and grumbled of, "Sleeping," Laxus headed out to make himself another sandwich.

Not before listening for the others though. He'd heard Elfman get up to go to the bathroom at one point (he could tell it was him due to the heavy footsteps and, when the man stubbed his toe on something out there, he'd grumbled about how men didn't feel pain), but other than that, the night had been pretty quiet.

Then again, Laxus was so focused on Mirajane that, really, a bomb could have gone off and he wouldn't have noticed.

That was another thing he usually didn't go an hour without. Thinking that the demon was perfect and amazing and that he loved her, that is.

…Wait. Love?

Eek! Maybe that ham had been spoiled, 'cause something was off…

He tried the salami that was in there that time as he made his sandwich, clad in only his boxers, as he stood in the darkened kitchen.

Man! Laxus already felt at home. And Mira's place was so spacious compared to his one bedroom apartment. And her mattress was rather nice.

He should move in. Get rid of Lisanna and Elfboy and he'd be all set!

…Oh, no. That ham was having a worse affect that he thought.

"What is wrong with me?" he grumbled to himself.

How could he think those things? That was, like, a major no-no in his rules of dating.

Then again, considering that he and Mirajane's whole relationship was just one big interdiction to everything he'd ever taught himself, there wasn't much he could do about that.

Love.

Ha.

He felt giddy.

…Shit. Was he drunk?

Maybe.

No.

Just…

"I'm going insane," he mumbled, taking a bite of his new sandwich. "Totally-"

And then the overhead light was flipped on. In all his indecision over whether or not he should just slowly start moving his stuff into Mira's place while moving Elfman and Lisanna's out (he was totally turning into a chick, he just knew it), he had neglected to hear the sound of someone else getting up.

Freezing, he prayed to all he knew that it was just Mirajane.

"L-Laxus?"

Oh, shit. It was Lisanna and Mira was going to kill him and-

Ooh. Their countertops were granite.

Focus!

But…that didn't sound like Lisanna. In fact, it sounded like…

"Evergreen?" Frowning, he said, "Did you follow me-"

"No!"

"Then…"

Then he was turning around and she was staring at him and he was just in shock because, seriously, Mira just had the place decorated so magnificently that he was totally moving in, it was a done deal, he was a king and deserved his castle finally and…

Oh. And Evergreen was only wearing some guy's shirt.

Considering Laxus knew without a doubt it wasn't his, that left only one other person.

"What are you-"

"Could ask you the same thing." He took a bite of his sandwich, just to keep it from slipping out that he thought that the tile in the kitchen was pretty great and that he loved the whole décor and he was going to ask Mirajane to marry him. He just-

Gah! The demon had to have slipped him something. Had to have.

"I-I-"

"Y-You," Laxus mocked. Good. He was getting his swagger back. "Into elves now, are we, Evergreen?"

"I-" She was blushing so deeply. "Honest, I was just- Wait. Are you… Lisanna?"

"Ew, gross, no. She's, like, a kid."

Ever only gave him a look making him glare.

"I'm fucking the demon."

Which totally wasn't supposed to come out that way, but hey. Fucking the demon, loving the demon, moving in with the demon…

They were all on his to-do list.

Multiple times on that first one.

"Y-You're what?"

"Uh-huh. Can't believe you aren't that perceptive. Even Freed and Bickslow know. Can't believe they haven't told you."

"Why didn't you tell me?"

"Uh, because I don't report to you. And considering you're standing here in Elfboy's t-shirt, I really don't see-"

"Laxus," they heard a hiss then. His blood ran cold.

He'd pissed off the demon.

Gulp.

Laxus Dreyar wasn't scared of a damn thing, but, well, you got Mirajane Strauss breathing down your neck and it's kinda hard for your stomach not to knot up at all.

"I told you," Mira was whispering tautly as she came into the kitchen. "That you had to be- Oh. Evergreen."

The woman was still just as flustered, but only glanced at Mira.

"Hi."

"Is he bothering you?" Mira asked, going back to shooting daggers at Laxus like it was nothing. Like Evergreen was just near naked in her kitchen every-

"Hold on," he growled then, not even finishing his thought. "So all this time you wouldn't bring me home, Elfman and Evergreen have been…in this house?"

"That's different, Laxus," Mira said as Evergreen just about died of mortification. "Evergreen lives in the dormitory, so-"

"And? So what? Who cares? I don't. I-"

"What's going on?"

Then Elfman was there and Laxus was reminded again that his dreams of a castle in which Mira did all the housework and waited on him hand and foot could not come true until he got rid of the other guy.

Grrr.

…He really needed to go to bed. Get more sleep. He was losing it.

"Nothing," Mira said, her own blushing popping up then. "We were just-"

"Laxus?" Elfman frowned. "Hey! Ever don't have time for whatever stupid mission or job you want her for. You overwork her! She's a man! Men deserve time off!"

Ever hit her boyfriend (Laxus was assuming that's what they were at that point) in the arm when he got close enough. "I'm not a man!"

The lightning mage snort. "So what, Ever? You complain to him then? Huh? You think that I ask too much of you? Do Freed and I need to reconsider your position on-"

"Of course not, Laxus!" Ever was at his side in seconds, tossing her arms around him. "I love you! I-"

"Ever," Elfman complained. Then he was bucking up again. "So that's it then! You're here to steal my woman! Well, I won't let you! You're not man enough for her!"

"Elfman," Ever complained as Laxus just wiggled his way out of her grasp.

"As if, Elfboy," he grumbled, taking another bite of his sandwich. "I'm fucking the demon."

"Laxus!" Mira exclaimed at his words as Elfman only looked to his sister, who took to crossing her arms over her chest, apparently embarrassed by the fact she was only in shorts and one of her fitted tees, just something to slip on when she came to track Laxus down.

"Y-You… He's here for you?"

Snort. "Well," Laxus said, "I don't just walk around in my skives for nothing! I ain't green."

Ever blinked. "I think you mean Gray."

"Whatever."

"Mirajane." Elfman was still staring at her. "You and Laxus are-"

"I really don't think that we need to discuss that with one another." Mira kept her eyes from him as she only glared at her boyfriend, who, just like that, realized he couldn't move into Mirajane's place.

Sure, it had it all. The beautiful decorating, the nice bed, and, of course, the demon, but then he would have to, like, do yard work.

Which…no. Just no.

Yeah, single living was the way to go.

He sure was glad that was over with.

Phew.

Belching, Laxus said, "Dragons like to sleep after feeding, so I'mma hit the hay. And then, before your sister heads off to the guild in a few hours, I'mma hit that too, Elfman. G'night."

"Laxus!"

"Ugh." Elfman looked like he was going to vomit as Ever took to staring at Mirajane. Not for long though, as the she-demon was racing down the hall then, after her boyfriend, yelling at him all the while.

"You are not allowed to say things like that! This is exactly why I didn't want to bring you here!"

"You know I have no filter. Stop putting expectations on me, Mirajane. I'm a free spirit! It won't work."

"I'll give you a free spirit."

Her bedroom door slammed behind them.

"Well," Ever said slowly once it was only her and Elfman left in the kitchen. "That was horrible. I don't even want my glass of water anymore."

"I need to go lie down." Elfman was turning to walk away then. "And pretend like this was a dream. A really bad, bizarre dream. Don't mention this to me in the morning."

"Believe me," Ever sighed, heading after him, "I won't."

It took Mira and Laxus a little while longer to calm down. About forty minutes if Lisanna was counting correctly, all the way from her bedroom at the back of the house.

"Think they're finally done?"

"I sure hope so," Bickslow complained as she only snuggled closer, her bed hardly big enough to fit the two of them. Not to mention his babies who were dormant and laying up on his chest and on the mattress. "You think they'd be a little more considerate. My babies need their rest."

"They don't know you're here, remember?" Lisanna giggled. "And after that debacle, I'd like to keep it that way."

Grinning, the tattooed man leaned down to kiss her head. "Gladly."

Poor Freed. He gets left out of everything. More Wedding Wars later today, maybe. I've started on it at least, so we'll see.