Chapter 21: Recommence

Laxus didn't like the train ride. At all. Not only was he motion sick, but it was also completely embarrassing to him, having to have Mirajane lift him out of his chair and into a seat in front of everyone and, ugh, why hadn't he just crack open his skull? Instead of his spine? And just died?

Erm.

Not that he was, like, wishing for that. Or anything. Because he wasn't. At all. He was just…

Ugh.

Makarov sat across from them and tried more than once to spark up a conversation, but only Mirajane seemed to be biting. Laxus, per usual, was stoic, if not a tad piqued. It had far less to do with anything other than, at that point, his motion sickness. His disability was definitely taking a rather big backseat to that.

"I really hope that they have a vacancy when we get there," Mirajane told both the Dreyar men frequently. "It would really be a shame if we went all of that way for nothing."

"Either way," Makarov would frequently remind the two of them, mostly Laxus. "We will continue to search for the place that best suits you, Laxus."

Yeah, like that was supposed to make him feel any better. If so, then it didn't. Literally at all. Laxus only sat there, trying hard to inhibit his nausea. It wasn't easy.

At one point, when Makarov got up to stretch his legs or piss or something (Laxus had his headphones in and didn't hear), Mirajane took to speaking to him directly.

"Are you feeling alright?" she asked as she just reached over and unlatched one of his headphones. Like they were that close.

Were they that close?

"I'm fine," was his grumbled response, hardly glancing at her. "Just annoyed that...he has to be here."

"Oh, Laxus, Master loves you." Then Mirajane bounced, just a bit. "Ooh, when we get to town, do you think it would be okay if I got in contact with Elfman?"

"Why would you do that exactly, Mirajane?"

"Just because I miss him." Then she paused. "And I don't want him to worry. I've seen Lisanna, but he-"

"What are you going to tell him?"

"I dunno yet. I-"

"Too risky."

"What? Laxus-"

"You," he accused, glancing over at her, "are just as bad as your sister. You might let something slip."

"So you still don't trust me then? After all I've done for you?"

"All you've- You led the old man right back to me!"

Meh. Moot point.

Latching his earphone back on, Mirajane just faced forwards again. Which was annoying and, reaching up to pull it off again, Laxus growled, just a bit at her.

"What?" he complained. "Is that not what you did?"

"For someone that I've been helping out by cutting a huge chunk out of my own life recently, you sure are acting rather uppity right now, Laxus."

Ugh.

"Well, I'm so sorry that I'm uncomfortable right now, Mirajane, and dizzy and nauseous and just want to take a nap. Forgive me."

"Then take one."

"What part of I'm uncomfortable-"

"Well, do you want me to do something or-"

"No." And then she saw his eyes dart around before he held his head up higher. "I don't."

"Oh, dragon, no one's even looking at-"

"Shut up, Mira." Headphone back on. "We can talk when we get to the hotel."

Which was the first stop when they finally got to that new town. Not a drop of rain had fallen there, so there were no puddles to worry about as they made their way to one. An awkward point occurred about then when Makarov booked a room for himself and Mirajane did the same. Yet, for some reason, both assumed that Laxus would be bunking with them.

"I'm stayin' with Mirajane, Gramps," Laxus grumbled as, luckily, there was an elevator in the hotel and they were riding up it. Laxus was immediately fearful of what would happen if, like, the place caught on fire and the elevator didn't work and he was stuck up there and then what, huh, then what? Well, then Mirajane reached over, in that cramped elevator and put her hand on his shoulder and he remembered that Satan Soul could fly and would no doubt save him. Or at least one of her demon's would.

Mira, however, just touched his shoulder as an acknowledgment to what he said and only nodded at Makarov. "We've already talked about this, Master."

Or at least things relating to it.

The man stifled, just a bit, before facing away from them both. "Yes, well, I just thought it would help things if-"

"It wouldn't," Laxus told him in a definitive tone.

And it wouldn't. At all.

Makarov's room was two down from Laxus and Mirajane's and, as he went to settle in, Mirajane only went to help Laxus do the same.

"We won't be here long," Mirajane told him as Elfman as she transformed just to lift him onto the bed. "So don't get too comfortable."

Laxus just shut his eyes. "We don't have to go down there right now. I mean-"

"You've put it off long enough," Elfman told him simply before the purple tiles appeared and Mirajane was left standing there. "Now, I'm gonna just be in the bathroom freshening up, okay? Then we'll get you ready to go."

"I am ready to go."

Mira only hummed in response before disappearing off into the adjoining bathroom. Laxus, not rather comfortable in the position she had left him, only took to taking in their new surroundings. There was a desk and a couch and a little table in front of the couch. He and Mira could slum it there for a bit. Until he got whatever he needed out that stupid center and then…

Then…

"Mira," he called out rather suddenly. "Never mind. I need to use the bathroom. Like now. So-"

"You're always so needy."

"Mira-"

"I'm just kidding," he heard her giggle from the other room, though he kept his eyes shut. "Just a sec, huh?"

Laxus laid around miserably for a good two minutes before Mirajane came back to him, hair fixed up a bit and grinning far more truly than she had for most of the day.

It felt as if the night before, when they had been back in that other town, in the bed that had slowly become their own, was far behind them. Equally as far felt the night that awaited them, in which Laxus hoped the single bed Mira had requested at the desk would mean more than just lying close for comfort.

Mirajane seemed upbeat, for some reason, just from getting a chance to freshen up after the storm they'd had to travel through to get to the new city. Laxus still felt awkward, her helping him in the bathroom after they'd...more than fooled around the night before. She was so oblivious to this (perhaps purposely), and just helped him change clothes as well and critiqued the fact he refused to do anything about his messy hair.

"Why should I want to be presentable to a bunch of people I don't even know?"

"For that exact reason, Laxus. And besides, you've always been very concerned about your looks, haven't you?"

"No." Yes. Of course. But not in such a way to make it seem as if he was concerned at all. But he knew what Mira was getting at. She was no doubt assuming he wasn't concerned because he was depressed or upset or freaking out inwardly or something other completely and freakishly right that he'd never allow her to know it was anything but. "When you have the looks of a god, Mirajane, you don't have to be concerned with them."

That got him a flick in the head. "Behave."

"Don't tell me what to do."

"Then learn to do it yourself." She gave him a look too. "I know that you're nervous-"

"Am not."

"-and that you feel uncertain about what's going to happen-"

"Nope."

"-but it's okay. Because I am too. I-"

"What do you have to be nervous about? Huh? You're not doing anything. At all. You're just-"

"I'm nervous for you." And that time, instead of a look or a flick, Mirajane leaned down to kiss him chastely on the lips. Then, still bent over so they could look one another in the eyes, she whispered, "So don't feel so alone, huh?"

But he did. Laxus felt completely alone. Perhaps that had been the problem since the beginning. Because it wouldn't have mattered if he went into that building with Makarov, Mirajane, the Thunder God Tribe, and even all of Fairy Tail; Laxus was alone in the end. He was the one that was paralyzed. He was the one that had to accept that it was his own mistake that brought him there. Him. No one else.

And it was him who was going to have to overcome it.

The center was...not what Laxus was expecting. At the same time, however, it also wasn't what he was fearing. It was just somewhere in the middle. It didn't reek of piss and shit (for some reason, his worst fear was a poorly run mental hospital/animal shelter; don't ask), but at the same time the reception area wasn't just filled with people sitting around in wheelchairs, blankly staring at nothing as they awaited help, contemplating their bleak futures (his expectation, perhaps, had more to do with his own personal mind state than anything else).

However, the people there were nice enough. Or, the woman behind the front desk was, anyways. Makarov had been kind enough to, after seeing them go into the center, leave the rest in the capable hands of Mirajane as he explored the town (and a bar, no doubt). Laxus was glad for this as, if he had to choose between his grandfather or his...whatever Mirajane was (friend?), then he would choose her.

Every time.

That first day was a lot of paperwork and talking to people and explaining his condition again and again. He met a lot of people whose names he immediately forgot and got stuck demonstrating a lot of things he could do, but didn't want to do.

Still...there were some hot women there. One in particular. That he didn't meet, but did see, a he was rolling down the hall, and he spent a lot of the down time figuring out how he could wiggle his way into being her patient.

Classic story. Paralyzed patient meets nurse. Nurse falls madly in love. Patient fucks nurse. Uh...that's where Laxus remembers it ending, but he was pretty sure there was more. Like him returning her feelings and finding emotional healing and… But he was pretty cool with his ending.

And the other sounded interesting enough. It-

Oh. There was Mira. Who...was his nurse too or…

Heh.

When they finally left the place around sundown, it was with Mirajane buzzing about just how great it was all going to be for Laxus while he just mostly sat in his chair, allowing her to push him for the time being, kinda sulking and kinda just resounding to what had just taken place.

"I'm so proud of you, Laxus," Mirajane told him once it was just them, out there on the street, searching for Makarov. It had, after all, been a few hours. "You handled everything very well. You-"

"I'm not a child, Mira."

"And?" She was undeterred. "I can still be proud of you. I'm proud of all of Fairy Tail, every single member, when they do something good. Even just coming home from a successful job. Or an unsuccessful one if they tried their best. So, yes, I am proud of you for getting over all of that mess that you'd built up in your mind about this and just did it."

He only huffed. Then, "I'm hungry. And I wanna take a shower when we get back. And we still have to talk to Gramps about helping out on payment and-"

"We'll get that all taken care of," Mira assured him. "Or I will. With your grandfather. You just worry about getting better."

Glancing up at her, Laxus blinked before saying, "I feel like burgers."

"Okay. Let's just find Master first, huh?"

If they had to…

Dinner was spent with Makarov asking all these questions that Laxus mostly let Mirajane handle. He just picked at the food he'd wanted and sipped at the beer that probably wasn't any good for him. Mirajane, who sat next to him, frequently tried to get him into the conversation as well, mentioning things that only he could speak on, the few times they'd been separated back at the center, but Laxus refused to play along with her even. Just at there, rather distant and not opening his mouth at all.

It wasn't so much his nerves that he refused he had any longer. Rather, it was more the fact that all of that, the concerns of a new place, the fear over how they were going to treat him at the center and even the fact that Mirajane might ditch out on him when she realized how much work there still was to do, was all washing away, leaving him kinda numb. He knew in the morning, when he had to go back down there once more, all of that would return as the jitters of his first time being alone in the place and actually having to do some physical therapy stuff would set in, but for the moment, he preferred the numbness.

When Mira headed off to the bathroom though, Laxus was left with no recourse other than speaking with his grandfather.

Unfortunately.

"Then tell me, boy, do you honestly think that you can get help there?" Makarov pried as Laxus and he just stared across the table at one another. "Laxus? You're not just settling in here like you were the other town, are you?"

"I didn't settle in at the last place," Laxus complained. "I-"

"My intention is not to fight, my boy," his grandfather said simply. "Just tell me the truth; are you going to get the help here that you need? Or do we need to keep looking?"

Laxus only reached forwards to grab his beer and take a long, final sip on it. Then, upon setting it once more on the table, he replied, "Yeah. I think I will."

"Alright then." Makarov relaxed quite visibly, nodding his head a bit. Then, swinging for the fences, he asked, "Would you, then, find it best if Mirajane-"

"If you're gonna ask again for her to go back to Magnolia or something along those lines," the slayer grumbled as he absently picked up the remnants of his burger, "don't."

So he didn't. And the woman was back soon enough anyways, still rather perked up over how well she perceive Laxus' day as going. She was still rather in a good mood when they got back to the hotel. It had been a busy day of drinking for Makarov, as well as train travel, so it was easy enough to get him to agree that it was time to call it a night. Mirajane left Laxus in their room and went down the hall to Makarov's to help him out with a few things (mostly to snoop, Laxus was sure, and make sure that he'd taken all those pills she was constantly insisting he take).

When she returned, it was finally time for them to be alone. Which mean it was time for her to help Laxus go to the bathroom. And then take a bath.

There was one issue though.

"You better," he grumbled as he sat there, in the tub, "be able to lift me back out of here."

"Of course I can, Lax." Mirajane wasn't in the bathroom with him at that point, but did call to him from the bedroom. "Besides, it had to be the tub; you don't have a shower chair."

He grunted. "It's for the best, anyhow. I mean, I know baths are, like, less clean, but I feel more clean, sitting here." Then, grinning mischievously, just a bit, he said, "You know, you could join me or-"

"Behave."

Grin right back to a frown. "That's not going to be a thing. So stop trying to make it one. I'm not an animal. I've let you get away with it before, but-"

"You'll call for me when you're ready to get out, right?" Mirajane poked her head back into the bathroom then, staring over at him. Apparently, when Mira took the leap from just friends to something more, all boundaries went out the window. "Dragon? I don't need to sit in here with you, do I?"

"Well, if you're not going to join me-"

"You know as well as I do that you don't really want that," she remarked. "So I'll give you one more time to make that joke before I do it. Go on."

He narrowed his eyes over at her. "Don't call my bluff, woman."

"Then don't make it so easy to."

Mirajane sat out in the other room, playing on her guitar while he bathed, singing softly to herself. Laxus spent more time in there than he should have, probably, just because he liked listening to her. Eventually though, he had to call out for her.

"And preferably don't transform into a man. I don't- Why are you your brother?"

"Because I'm not just a man," Elfman told him as he lifted him out of the tub. "I'm the man!"

Mirajane made it really hard to find her attractive at times. Really, really hard.

"Couch or bed?" Mirajane asked after he was toweled off and in his boxers. She'd, thankfully, transformed into Satan Soul for him that time as he requested she just help him into bed.

And he had to admit, as much as he'd come to enjoy his time at the apartment (or at least more than he'd built up he would elsewhere), the hotel mattress was far nicer and the blankets and pillows were cozier and mmmm, it felt even better when Mirajane got in bed with him not soon after.

"Today was long," she mumbled as she stared across the bed at him. He was just laying there, on his back, staring up at the ceiling. "I feel like it's been, at least, three days since...since last night."

"Me too." Turning his head to the side, he only stared over at her. "You think your sister and Bickslow got anything done today?"

"Knowing them? No." Then she giggled. "But as much devotion as he has for you, I'm sure that he'll get it all done soon."

That just made Laxus grunt and turn his head back up to the ceiling. "Yeah, well, he's good for something, I guess."

"He's good for a lot."

"Like encroaching on your sister."

"Ew. What did he tell you?" Then Mira frowned. "And what does encroaching mean?"

"You're so stupid, Mira."

"L-Laxus-"

"In a good way." And his tone was light as he said it. "Silly, I mean. Not stupid."

Shifting a bit on her half to he bed, she only said, "I just wish that I knew what was going on with Lisanna. I mean, we usually tell one another everything, but right now I'm all stuck up on you and-"

"Bickslow isn't doing anything with your sister, Mira. I'm just teasing you." The he blinked. "At least that I know of."

"Oh, great."

"Lisanna is grown, you know."

"I know," Mira agreed. "I don't always like it, but I know."

"He's not that bad anyhow." Laxus paused. "He's just not that good either."

Heh.

"I don't really want to talk about them right now though," he told her to which Mira only hummed. "When you're lying here, with me, I sorta-"

"Lax, I'm not saying this to be mean, but..."

"What?" And his breath held too, as he awaited her next words. Clearly she was going to tell him that she very much so hadn't enjoyed herself the night before, which is what he'd feared fro the beginning. That it had all just been for him and, if they could never do it again, she'd be fine with that. What could he say too that anyways? Huh?

"I don't know if you can...again. So soon."

Nothing. He had nothing to say too that. Because she threw him a curve ball when he was expecting a fast.

"What are you blabbering about?" He was less hurt then and more offended. "I can-"

"Lax, you know that you have poor… And last night you kinda just… Do we have to talk about it?"

"There's nothing to talk about."

"Oh, dragon."

"Stop...doing that. Oh nothing." He started trying to shift then. "Help me sit up."

Mirajane did, of course, as well as tentatively moved to get into his lap, figuring that's what he wanted. He could tell she wasn't into it, so he only rested a hand on her thigh as he stared at her.

"I," he told her as she only shifted a bit, no doubt to try and keep him most comfortable, "am not… I can… You proved it last night. So why are you now-"

"I didn't prove it, silly." And she reached out then to cup the back of his neck with her hand. "You did."

"Either way-"

"You're not one hundred percent, Lax," Mira pointed out. "And you were hardly able to..." And she was blushing rather heavily then and they both felt awkward, even though the conversation was about them and what had occurred just the night before. "You could hardly get, well, hard-"

"Mira-"

"No, Lax, it's fine. I actually picked up a pamphlet while you were at that center-"

"What is with you and reading about me and my condition-"

"It's interesting. And it effects me too. Sort of." She giggled that time. "If you want though, Lax, we can…try to get you all worked up again. I don't know how much you're going to enjoy it or not, but-"

"What about you?"

"W-What?"

"Isn't that what you kept insisting?" She'd worn shorts to bed, so it was right on her thigh that his hand was resting, stroking gently. "That night when you were drunk?"

"Was it?" Mira seemed truly at a loss. "That's a bit hazy for me."

"Well, if last night feels like three days to you, I'd imagine that-"

"Besides, Lax, I'm not worried about me."

"Oh yeah?"

Nodding, she said, "I'm concerned about you. You have a busy morning tomorrow and-"

"But it's so early right now," he argued. "For me, anyways."

It was with a slight sigh that Mirajane removed her hand from his neck and moved to rest it instead on his bare chest. "I think it'll take a lot more...stimulation than last night to get you ready tonight."

"Mmmm." Laxus shut his eyes then, tightly, before saying, "Not if I do this right."

"What are you doing?"

"Just thinkin'."

"Laxus-"

He hummed, lips turning upright. "Call me Mr. Dreyar."

"You are so stupid."

But Mirajane was giggling then and Laxus opened his eyes, grinning at this.

"That's not nice," he chided, reaching up with his other hand to gently poke her nose. "Demon. Don't you mean silly?"

"Nope." She giggled some more. "I definitely don't."

"You're so mean." But he felt himself begin to laugh along with her. "Did you know that?"

"Mmmm." Reaching up then, she gently ran her fingers through his still messy hair. She left them tangled there as she said, "But dragon, I think there's something that you're forgetting."

"Is there?"

"You don't have to pretend, silly." And her blue eyes were a bit alight as she stared at him. "Whatever you need to… I can be it. Remember?" Her fingers were gently massaging his scalp then. "Whatever."

Laxus swallowed, just a bit, grin falling. "Is that right?"

"Completely."

"Mmmmm."

"So tell me what you were thinking about?"

"Nothin'. I was just jokin'."

"Sure."

"I-"

"Was it someone I know?"

"Mira-"

"That would help a lot," she told him. "I have to at least have seen them once before."

"It wasn't any-"

"Then pick someone."

"I don't want to." He wasn't grinning at all anymore. Not even a hint of it. He knew Mira's game; it was a very dangerous one. He put the wrong name out there and he'd be in big trouble. Hell, he could even put the completely right one out there and they could have a good time with it; until some time passed and it started to eat at Mirajane and then she took it out at him. "So just-"

"Was it your nurse friend?"

He choked. "W-What? Mira-"

"I saw you," she said then as he only paled, just a bit. He hadn't even played the game, at all, and already he was in trouble. Women were tricky. "Every single time she passed. And that time that she walked by, helping that guy with that walker-"

"What the hell, Mira?" His hand dropped off her thigh. "What? Were you just watching me the entire time? Or-"

"I was trying to be there for you, silly. And calm down."

"You're not allowed to blame me for things that I don't mention to you." He felt like that was a rule. Was it not? "And especially for just looking. Because I didn't- And hey! You're not allowed to be pissy at me about anything. We're not, like, a couple or anything, so-"

"Are you done?"

"...Maybe."

"I'm not mad at you, Laxus." Mirajane was staring him right in the eyes too. "I was telling you that I saw her too. Which means, if you would just listen, that I can transform into her."

Laxus blinked. Then he frowned. "No. Because you'll be all weird about it and-"

"I will not." She gave him a look. "You don't think that you're the only guy I've transformed for, do you?"

"Well…I don't like to think of you with other guys, but-"

"Do you remember what color her eyes were? Because I'm blanking. I think I remember most everything else though-"

"No." And his tone wasn't defensive anymore. Just absolute. "Don't, Mirajane."

"Why? I just told you-"

"I don't want you to."

"Why are you being-"

"I want you." And Laxus leaned forwards, just a bit, resting his head in the crook of her neck. "Demon."

"But why?" She was stiff as he nuzzled against her, breath caught. "When I can-"

"Because you might fuck it up," was his grumbled response. Not at all what she'd been hoping for. "You couldn't have gotten that good a look at her. And then that'll forever scar my fantasy about her and I banging after I, you know, get all better or whatever. So-"

Mira relaxed some then. "You're so stupid."

"Just be you." He kissed her neck then, hand coming back up to her thigh. Against her flesh, he breathed, "I just want you."

Breathing deeply then, she whispered, "Fine. But just let me do this, huh?"

"W-What are you-"

Purple tiles appeared then as Laxus sat back, away from her, watching as when they dissipated Mirajane was still, as he'd requested, herself. Rather, she'd changed out of what she wore to bed and had on something rather lacy with a lot less fabric.

"This will help you," she breathed. "Right?"

Laxus struggled then to reach over and flip on the bedside lamp. Mirajane blinked at this, the light a bit much after so much darkness, but he only stared.

"Dragon-"

"I just wanted to see. Completely." Then he grinned, but it was rather deviously. "Can you stand up?"

"Shut up." But Mirajane needed to get up anyways. "We used the only...protection you had in your wallet last night, right? Do you have some more?"

"Why?" He wanted to grumble that, but her walking around gave him a rather good look at her. And though it didn't feel like it was doing a lot, he felt if his blood flow wasn't all screwy because of his injury, it would have done a hell of a lot. "We didn't use it for anything. We didn't...uh...I wasn't inside of you."

"Why did you have to say that? That makes it sound so-"

"Well, I wasn't, so-"

"Do you have anymore?"

"Yeah," he grumbled as she went over to where his bag was, sitting on one half of the couch. "I got some. Just dig through there."

"Well, I never saw it before when I was packing your suitcase or getting you things, so-"

"Try the little pocket in there. I have some jewels and-"

"Gosh, Laxus, how much did you bring with you?" Mira frowned at all the foil packets. "Were you afraid of populating the entire planet or something?"

"Well, I never know just how lucky I'm going to get on a job. Or how thankful the village is going to be."

"The entire village?"

"Maybe."

"Men included?"

He frowned. "Mira-"

"Because that's the only way you could have ever used this much-"

"Would you just grab one and come back over here? Even though we probably won't need it? You don't even think that I can get-"

"I just think we should have one with us in case-"

"How dirty do you think I am anyways?"

She turned off the light when she came back over, leaving them in the dark once more. "I think you're filthy."

Heh.

It wasn't as easy as it had been the night before for Laxus. And he got frustrated quite quickly that night, but Mirajane only stroked his head and told him not to worry about it; he had more important things to worry about in the morning, anyways.

Not that it made him feel any better though. Literally at all.

Makarov wanted to be the one to go with Laxus to the center that day. Since he'd be the one paying for things, he argued over breakfast at the hotel, it would only make sense. And Laxus told Mirajane that she'd spent a lot of time worry about him; she could have the day to herself.

"Can I talk to-"

"Get your damn brother on the lacrima," he grumbled to her as she about choked on her toast out of excitement. "If you have to. But don't-"

"I won't." She grinned brightly at him. "I promise."

Laxus had other things to dread, however, than the Strausses that day. Namely, he was going to hopefully begin his rehab exercises.

Even the thought of seeing that nurse (and hopefully having her, uh, rehabilitate him) didn't help.

He was wracked with nerves once more.

And his grandfather was not helping.

"Late night?" he asked on the walk over there (or roll, for Laxus) as the slayer yawned quite a bit. And Laxus couldn't tell if there was some snark in there or not, but only rolled his eyes and grunted.

He was not going to be talking to the man about Mirajane again. That was left in that other town. Plain and simple.

The biggest concern to Laxus, who prided himself quite heavily on his physical capabilities and overall appearance, was being inadequate in that department. That they would ask him to do something that he just wasn't able to. Whether it be lift something or maybe they'd want to test what mobility he had and, oh shit, if they had pamphlets on it, were they could to ask him about...about...what Mira was so concerned about?

Because he didn't want to have to go through that again.

He was slowing down, he could tell, about halfway there, with his rolling. His hands felt clammy and he was hardly propelling himself at all.

He couldn't go there. He didn't need to. Laxus knew how to care for himself. Honest, he did. And where he couldn't, there was Mirajane. And when she inevitably flaked, he'd just get another woman. He would...he'd...just…

"Come on, boy." And Makarov didn't even say anything. Just suddenly stopped walking and got behind Laxus' wheelchair (which was about as tall as him, mind you) and began pushing him along. "Relax. I'll be right there with you. For as long as you need me to be."

And Laxus wanted to tell him that he didn't need him and he hadn't in a long time. That he wasn't a boy and he didn't even want the man there, in the same town as him, much less escorting him to his rehab center. Makarov was just a foolish old man. That was all. And Laxus was a man. Who didn't derive comfort from any of his family. At all. He was...he just…

He just slowly set back and allowed the man to push him for most of the way (though he did take over eventually because, come on, Makarov was, like, ancient; no need for him to have a heart attack on Laxus' account) and didn't complain when the old geezer spoke over him more than once up at the center. Just sat there and took deep breaths.

Because he didn't need Mirajane to calm him down. Or Makarov, honestly, either. He could do it himself.

But...if one of them was offering...and he couldn't have the one that he wanted...he'd definitely take his grandfather.

Definitely.