A/N First of all, I'd just like to say thank you to my readers for their support since this story has officially hit the number two spot. Only one more left to go and it gets to number one, everyone! Now, that stuff aside, the next chapter will be posted on next Monday, that's all.
Disclaimer: I do not own Bleach or Fairy Tail, or any of their characters, and I make no money off of this.
Chapter 36
Magnolia: Fairy Tail Guildhall, The Next Morning
Natsu and Ichigo entered the guildhall as they usually did, this being the first time they had done so in quite some time without some kind of immediate threat looming over their heads.
After yesterday's events and with the Fantasia Parade finally being put behind them a sense of normalcy started to sink in. For each of them, though for a lesser extent Natsu, it was a welcome change.
"I'm going to the request board." Natsu stated, his blue-haired feline companion following suit.
"I'm heading over to the bar to say hi to Mira. Let me know if you find anything." Ichigo said.
"Aye sir!" Happy replied cheerfully.
The substitute walked over to the main bar as he had said, but it was devoid of the woman he had intended to greet. Still, at the bar sat Fairy Tail's most talented drinker with a friendly smile that she directed to the man who just recently took down Laxus.
"Well if it isn't the king with two queens." Cana said jokingly, offering a teasing smirk to Magnolia's now renewed number one bachelor.
"Ha, ha, very funny… I'd ask if you stayed up all night coming up with that, but something tells me you were too drunk to even think." Ichigo replied, a slight blush gracing his cheeks as he did so.
"You're getting better at this." Cana commented, chuckling to herself as she spoke.
"Well you give me plenty of practice." Ichigo replied with a small smirk.
"Oh? I could give you plenty of that in other things to… if you're interested." Cana offered, directing a seductive look towards the orange-haired teen.
Ichigo blushed heavily and averted his eyes, but before the brown-haired teen could press her 'advantage' in the everlasting war of teasing, a very loud sound came from the back room. The source of this was likely a series of boxes falling to the floor which just happened to do so right after Cana had spoken those last set of words.
'That can't be good…' Ichigo thought. From the sound they made upon landing he could only assume that whatever feel was extremely heavy.
"Mira, you alright back there?!" Makarov shouted, using his hand in order to lightly amplify the sound.
"I'm good!" Mira replied from the back. Incidentally the look on her face was not a happy one given what she had just heard.
"Hmm… Ichigo, ya think you could go make sure she's alright?" Makarov requested in his usual tone of voice.
"Sure." Ichigo replied.
As the substitute went into the back room, at which point Cana released a small sigh and Makarov began to hum in thought. He may have been old, but he wasn't blind, and Mira completely owed him for doing what he did.
'Still… I wonder who it'll wind up being.' Makarov thought curiously.
Fairy Tail Guildhall: Back Room
"Stupid… lousy… handsome… inconsiderate… dense…" Mira mumbled in an agitated manner as she continued to shelve the books and boxes that had recently fallen. She walked up the ladder with a scowl marking her features, clearly being annoyed in the wake of what had just occurred.
Not only had she slipped and fallen off of a ladder, a large number of books and a few boxes fell down as well. They may not have landed on her, but she almost wished they had. Maybe then her mind wouldn't be clouded with thoughts of Cana stealing away something she believed was hers.
"Mira, you in here?" Ichigo called out.
The white-haired woman looked over with a shocked expression on her face, clearly not having believed Ichigo was inside the room while she had been speaking. Due to this, she lost her balance on the ladder yet again and began to struggle to stay put.
"Uwah-whoooa!" Mira exclaimed before finally succumbing to gravity and fully losing her balance.
She closed her eyes in order to brace for the inevitable impact, but very quickly she found herself being caught in someone's arms. Mira then opened her eyes to see none other than Ichigo staring down at her with a concerned expression as he held her suspended in bridal style.
"You okay?" Ichigo asked.
"Um… y-yeah… I'm okay." Mira replied.
The S-Class wizard looked up at the substitute with her captivating blew orbs gazing into his eyes, a small blush present on her face all the while. She quickly had the desire to stay put for the time being, which was actually quite convenient given that Ichigo didn't give off any intention of putting her down.
'He makes it so hard to be mad at him…' Mira thought. Granted she didn't know or believe that he had done anything in the wake of Cana's offer, but that didn't mean she wasn't mad about it.
"So… what brings you back here?" Mira asked, though her eyes never swayed from his.
"Uh… the old man told me to check on you…" Ichigo replied.
'Thanks master!' Mira thought ecstatically. The master always pulled through when he needed to, it seemed.
The two just stared at each other for a time, neither giving off any impression that they would change their current arrangement in the slightest. Mira couldn't even hear anything in the outside world. The sound of her own heart beating in anticipation was really the only thing she could actually make out.
When she saw Ichigo's head begin to move, she could swear her heart skipped a beat, but she quickly realized that he was only turning it to look at the door as apparently someone had just entered the room.
"Ichigo, the master said you were h…" Erza began, only to freeze in place due to the sight that greeted her.
'Master, why?!' Mira thought out of annoyance, knowing full well by what the redhead had said that Makarov had been the one to send her back.
All three inhabitants of the room completely froze, none of them being entirely sure what was going to happen. The first signs of motion were Erza's body slightly but visibly shaking as quiet gasps escaped her lips.
"Um… Erza… are you okay?" Ichigo questioned, his voice laced with concern.
"Wha… wh…" Erza mumbled incoherently.
It took a few seconds for her to fully regain her ability to form a proper sentence, but when she did it was made very apparent that she was not what one would describe as 'okay'.
"What are you two doing?!" Erza shouted angrily.
The collective response of the two questioned individuals was for each of them to blush, at which point they separated from one another and stood in at each other's side.
"Um…" Ichigo uttered, not entirely sure how to express quite what was happening.
"I uh… I f-fell and he caught me." Mira replied, sounding somewhat embarrassed.
"Really?" Erza asked in a voice full of heavy sarcasm, crossing her arms underneath her breasts as she did so.
"Y-Yeah." Ichigo replied.
The scarlet-haired mage looked at the two skeptically for a moment, after which she just released a huff of annoyance and subsequently stormed off from the room with a dismissive look present on her features.
Ichigo couldn't make heads or tails of what had just happened or why it had annoyed Erza, but he just chalked it off as something he wouldn't understand and simply put it behind him.
"Sorry about that, by the way…" Ichigo abruptly said, averting his eyes slightly out of mild embarrassment.
"N-No, it's fine. Thanks for catching me." Mira replied, also not finding herself able to meet the eyes of her close friend as she spoke.
"So what were you doing back here anyway?" Ichigo asked, oh-so-casually changing the subject to something he deemed as a little less awkward.
"The master asked me to reorganize a section of the bookcase and check a few books while I was at it. I was almost done, but I… I uh, fell… and some of the books came down." Mira replied.
"Oh… well as long as you're fine I guess it doesn't matter." Ichigo mused.
"Yeah, but I've still got some work to do." Mira said, very gently laying out a hint that she hoped the orange-haired teen would take.
"Okay… well, I don't want to be a bother so I'll leave you to it." Ichigo replied blankly before walking off.
The white-haired woman's eyebrow twitched out of annoyance but she supposed it may have been her fault given that the 'hint' could have easily been misconstrued as something else entirely. She made a note just to be a little more direct next time.
'Oh well… back to work, I guess.' Mira thought.
Inside the Main Guildhall
"Was she alright?" Makarov questioned, looking towards the orange-haired teen for an answer.
"Hm? Oh, yeah, she was." Ichigo replied, his face still slightly red due to recent events.
He walked over to the main bar, taking a seat nearest to the master given that the elderly mage was really the only person in the guildhall he could have a conversation with at the moment. Erza was always an option, but she was pouting in a corner for some reason. Natsu and Lucy were looking at the request board alongside Happy. Gray wasn't present, neither was Elfman, and Cana would just tease him continuously.
"I see… well, glad to hear it. By the way, I must thank you once again for stopping Laxus. If I had acted sooner then perhaps things wouldn't have happened the way they did." Makarov said.
"You know I don't think he was a bad person… he was just lost." Ichigo began, surprising the master as a result.
"What do you mean?" Makarov inquired, mostly out of basic curiosity.
"When I fought him, it was clear to me that he couldn't really make out what was inside his own heart, what was guiding his actions. At first I was confused, but now I know that the reason I couldn't sense what was in his heart was because he didn't know what he was fighting for. There was so much confusion inside his energy when we fought, and now I'd like to think maybe he's realized that himself. One day, I don't know when, we'll see him again, and when we do I think his heart will be in the right place." Ichigo stated.
The master of the Fairy Tail guild looked down at the drink in his mug solemnly, his lips dropping slightly but not going so far as to sink into a depressed frown. Ichigo's words truly were comforting, of that there was no doubt, but at the same time it only made his separation from his one and only grandchild that much harder to cope with.
To throw Laxus out knowing that his reasons were completely in the wrong was one thing, to throw him out knowing that his heart was just in a state of pure confusion was another altogether. Still, Makarov wouldn't have changed anything if he had known that sooner, if only because Laxus did indeed need some time away.
"Hmm… well, thank you for telling me that. I never thought Laxus was a bad person, not once, even during that whole fiasco yesterday. To know that his heart was truly confused takes a weight off of my shoulders, and for that I thank you." Makarov said honestly.
"Don't mention it, old man." Ichigo replied with a small smile.
"Oh, speaking of which, I have your badge from yesterday…" Makarov trialed off, reaching into his pockets as he spoke as if he were searching for said object.
"What did you want it for again?" Ichigo asked.
Before an answer was given, the wooden skull badge was thrown to him by the guild master, who all the while was smirking amusedly due to the fact that clearly he had something planned.
"Well, I've been thinking lately… about how you have to switch between your human body and that 'soul' form of yours whenever you need to fight. To be honest, I can't seem to see how that's not a pain in the ass…" Makarov replied.
'You have no idea…' Ichigo thought. At this point he almost wanted Kon of all people here to watch over his body. Still, that was only just almost. He believed he'd never really be that desperate to make such a wish.
"So, after some tinkering with it, I've discovered that you should be able to use something similar to…" Makarov began, only to be cut off.
"Master Makarov!" Mira called out, bursting out of the back room casually. Oddly enough, though, she held some sort of book in her hand which implied she had some sort of inquiry about her reorganizing effort.
"Hold on my boy… uh, what is it, Mira?" Makarov asked, directing a smile towards the white-haired teen as he did so.
Mira opened the book in response, after which she held it down for the master to see and pointed at the direct center of some odd page, staring at it quizzically before choosing to speak.
"I wanted to ask about this… I'm pretty sure there's some kind of error here." Mira stated.
"Hmm… you appear to be correct. You're saying you couldn't find these supplies in the back room?" Makarov asked.
"I don't think they're there." Mira replied.
"Ah, I know why. I used them during the parade yesterday as lighters during the Fantasia. Looks like I forgot to make the entry." Makarov replied, releasing a slight chuckle.
"No problem, I just needed to make sure." Mira said.
The barmaid then observed that Ichigo was directly in front of her and appeared to have been conversing with the master for some reason. She saw his Combat Pass being held within his hand, and this caused her to quirk a brow out of curiosity.
"So, what were you two talking about?" Mira asked conversationally.
"Actually, I was just about to explain something… you see, yesterday I had Ichigo give me his Combat Pass." Makarov began.
"Still haven't told me why…" Ichigo pointed out.
"I'm gettin' to it, so hold your horses… anyway, I was just telling him that lately it struck me that constantly having to detach from his human body is likely very annoying. So, I believe I've come up with a way to fix that." Makarov said, sounding rather pleased with himself for such a self-proclaimed discovery.
"Wait, really?" Ichigo and Mira asked in unison.
"Yes, really. After getting a good look at what makes up this damn thing, I've realized that it's strictly tethered to you. It holds some form of property that is similar to magic, so in theory it should be able to be used by others, but obviously you are the only one that can use it." Makarov stated.
"Is this going somewhere?" Ichigo asked with a deadpanned expression.
"Yes, indeed it is… Erza, can you please come here?!" Makarov asked, shouting for the mentioned redheaded knight given that she was currently across the guild.
Fairy Tail's Queen walked up to the group as quickly as she could, sporting a neutral expression on her face. She did feel the urge to glare at Mira, which showed when she arrived, but it was brief as anything and didn't hold her from speaking to the master.
"Yes, master, what is it?" Erza inquired.
"Now, as you are well aware, Ichigo, Erza is an expert in Requip magic. That magic is one in which the user stores away weapons, or in her case both weapons and armors, into a magical space, which is a pocket dimension of sorts… or so we believe." Makarov stated.
"Master, I'm not sure that I understand…" Erza trailed off confusedly. She, after all, didn't have the necessary background information that the others apparently did.
"The master thinks that he's come up with a way for Ichigo to use his combat pass without separating from his body." Mira stated.
"Really? That's quite something…" Erza said, sounding both surprised and impressed.
"Yeah, yeah, I'm amazing and this is impressive, whatever… now, back to what I was saying… I've done a bit of tinkering with this pass and, while I won't bother getting into the specifics, I believe I have modified it successfully." Makarov stated triumphantly.
"Um… so what the hell does that mean?" Ichigo asked blankly, directing a lazy look towards the pass itself as he did so.
"Just use it and you'll see…" Makarov replied vaguely.
The substitute directed a skeptical look towards the elderly wizard for a brief moment, but after that he just shrugged his shoulders and opted to comply.
"Mira, Erza, we should probably step back." Makarov suggested.
"W-Wait, is something dangerous going to happen when I use this?!" Ichigo exclaimed.
"No… at least, nothing should happen." Makarov replied.
"Master, have you properly tested whatever it is you did to his Combat Pass?" Erza asked skeptically.
"How could I test it if he's the only one that can use it?" Makarov countered.
"So you're saying you really have no idea what's going to happen." Mira stated, glaring sideways at the master as she did so.
"Meh, like I said, nothing bad should happen… probably." Makarov replied.
"You expect me to try this based on 'probably'?!" Ichigo shouted.
"Yup." Makarov plainly answered.
"Unbelievable…" Ichigo uttered in an agitated tone.
"Ichigo, you may as well do it. If the master says he is sure, then I trust his judgment." Erza remarked.
Still, should Ichigo be somehow harmed by taking part in this pseudo-experiment, she would have no compunction against shouting and scolding the master to kingdom come. The same could be said for Mira as well, who was of a similar opinion.
"Fine, I'll do it…" Ichigo sighed out.
He looked down at the Combat Pass, at which point he inwardly shrugged off his worries. After all, he didn't really think he had anything to lose.
In the next instant, he grabbed the pass and activated it, at which point his body was engulfed in an aura of light blue spiritual energy, the likes of which moderately resembled fire.
It easily caught the attention of everyone present, and when the energy dissipated a moment later Ichigo's appearance was shown. He was indeed in his Soul Reaper attire, but this time, however, the distinct lack of his physical body was apparent.
Ichigo looked in every direction and saw that his body was nowhere to be seen, at which point he looked down at his clothing to ensure that it had changed. However, upon seeing that he was in his Soul Reaper form, shihakusho and all, he adopted a surprised expression.
"Heh, I figured that it'd work." Makarov said contentedly.
"Waita go, master!" Mira chirped.
"Well done, Master Makarov." Erza remarked, nodding her head as a form of reserved acknowledgment.
"How'd you manage to do this, old man?" Ichigo asked, turning his sights to the esteemed Wizard Saint once more.
"Well, the reason that I mentioned Erza's requip magic before and had her come over here is because I believe I've just discovered something very interesting." Makarov stated.
"Will you just explain instead of starting off ambiguously like that?" Ichigo groaned out in an agitated manner.
"I was getting' to it, so shut your yap. Anyway, as I was saying, I tinkered a little bit with your Combat Pass, and when I discovered that it connects to your soul directly and only yours, I realized that it separates the body and soul completely. However, that's not all…" Makarov began.
"If you pause again like that, I'm gonna hit you." Ichigo warned.
"You are so impatient… but, that aside, I realized that the Combat Pass couldn't just separate the body and soul, because if it only did that then you shouldn't, in theory, be able to reunite with it. Therefore, I started to believe that there had to be something special about the soul form itself that would allow this to happen, and, after considering that, I decided to test out a little theory."
"Yes, and it appears you were successfully able to bring out Ichigo's soul form without separating from his body. However, that doesn't explain where his body currently is." Mira commented.
"Correct, and that's why I brought up Requip…" Makarov trailed off.
"Do you man to say that you… transferred his body to a pocket dimension?" Erza asked in a tone of awe.
"No, not exactly…" Makarov said leadingly, a smirk plastered onto his face.
Ichigo began to think on the master's words, as did the other two curious females that kept his company for the time being. Sending his body to a pocket dimension was what he, initially, believed the master had done. Though he was glad that this wasn't the case, and for obvious reasons, that still didn't tell him exactly where his body was.
However, upon thinking back to all Makarov had said, and where he seemed to be heading, Ichigo's eyes widened out of both shock and realization. His body had to be stored somewhere, and that place itself may very well have been the only space within his soul that he could think of.
'Hang on, he doesn't mean…' Ichigo thought.
'Wait, your body is supposed to be in here? What the hell, I can't see it!' The hollow griped.
The receiver of his childish complaint was, however, exceedingly thrilled that this was the case. While that was one less worry on his plate, he still needed to hear just what Makarov believed he had discovered.
"Then you're saying that you realized that there's something within the soul, aren't you." Ichigo guessed, eliciting a firm nod in response.
"The magic that one becomes an expert in is a manifestation of ones deepest desires, of their heart, of their very being, and, of course, their soul. It always struck me as odd that Requip users were able to create pocket dimensions, however this proves conclusively that a pocket dimension isn't necessarily the right term to use." Makarov replied.
"Wait, master, are you saying that Requip magic… Erza's magic, somehow manages to store weapons and armors inside her very soul?" Mira asked in an awestruck tone.
"That is exactly what I am saying." Makarov stated.
"B-But that sort of thing… how can you be entirely sure?" Erza asked curiously.
"No, he's right…" Ichigo began.
He caught the attention of both Mira and Erza, both of whom released a slight gasp out of surprise. Makarov, though, just smirked given that the words of the substitute had already confirmed what he had believed.
"There's something called an inner world that each person has, but only Soul Reapers can immerse themselves into, at least to my knowledge. It is where the manifestation of their sword, their zanpakuto, resides. To give a brief explanation of what the inner world itself is, it's basically a summary of who you are as a person. Your inner world carries all of who you are within it." Ichigo explained.
"If such a thing didn't exist and possess the capability to hold objects of some kind within it, his use of the badge wouldn't have resulted in anything different. However, since it acts as a link between the soul and the body, at least to some degree, the modifications I made to it made it so that his body is now within this… this inner world of his." Makarov explained.
"To be able to figure out something like that without knowing it even existed in the first place… I'm impressed." Ichigo admitted.
Had Makarov been given the information that the inner world of individuals did exist, it would have been understandable that he was able to make such a discovery. However, since he did not have that information, the substitute couldn't help but be in a state of mild admiration.
The master's intelligence in this instance reminded him a bit of Urahara, though a more serious and slightly less perverted version thereof.
"Thank you, my boy. Still, though, I'm just pleased that it works. Think of this as a token of my gratitude for your efforts this past month or so since you've joined our guild." Makarov replied, flashing a friendly smile towards the young warrior as he did so.
"No problem, old man. This should be really useful." Ichigo stated, a bit of content in his voice as he spoke.
He then focused his energy and activated the badge again, assuming that this was the manner in which he was to return back to 'normal'. After all, the master wasn't stupid enough to send his body to a one way ticket into his inner world.
Ichigo's body was then engulfed in the same aura that it had been prior, which dissipated in about the exact same period of time.
This time, though, he heard several gasps, a few people fall over, and saw a few things that made him rather confused. First and foremost, Mira and Erza currently had faces that were the very same brilliant color as his misconstrued namesake. Even Makarov had wide eyes as if he couldn't believe what he was seeing.
'What the hell are they…' Ichigo thought.
He, however, looked down and immediately realized why everyone around him seemed to be starting at him so oddly. Right before the eyes of everyone present in the guildhall, his clothing had vanished and he was naked as the day he was born.
Immediate, he covered himself up with both of his hands as best as he could, though his face turned into a deep crimson color that rivaled that of Mira and Erza.
"Where the hell did my cloths go?!" Ichigo exclaimed.
"W-Wh… wha… w-wha…" Mira and Erza stammered in unison, steam virtually shooting out of their ears.
"Dammit, I don't have my camera with me! That pageant slip-up of his made me careless!" Cana shouted, sounding as if she were genuinely scolding herself.
"Gray, you'll pay for this! How dare you infect Ichigo with your creepy stripping habit?!" Natsu shouted angrily.
"I didn't do nothin'!" Gray shouted defensively.
"Ichigo, use the pass again!" Makarov advised in a hurry, though this was only after he recovered from the initial shock.
The substitute did as he was told, at which point the blue flame-like aura of spiritual energy coated his body briefly before dissipating and giving way for his soul form.
His face was still bright red, and he was currently glaring heavily at Makarov coupled with a very angry, toothy snarl. That was to be expected after recent events, though.
"Old man, I swear, if you had anything to do with this…" Ichigo growled out.
"I had no idea that was going to happen! If you were a hot babe, then maybe, but…" Makarov began, though he was cut off.
"Do you want to be hit?!" Ichigo shouted.
"J-Just give me the pass so I can see what's wrong with it!" Makarov exclaimed.
Though he growled while doing so, Ichigo tossed the master his Combat Pass. If, however, it wasn't fixed as he had said the next time he tried, he would be much less lenient.
"I-I'm going back to organizing the supplies and books!" Mira exclaimed, her face still bright red.
The barmaid then ran into the back room, doing so with such speed that it actually surprised a great deal of people present. Erza, though, was still standing in place with a shocked expression etched on her face coupled with bright crimson cheeks. The shade of red thereof may very well have outshined her beautiful and noteworthy hair.
'Why does crap like this happen to me?!' Ichigo wailed in thought. Even now more than half of the guild was still staring at him as if they were frozen in place.
'Beats me, but I thought it was funny.' The hollow commented.
'Who asked you?!' Ichigo shouted.
'I was just stating a general fact, dumbass.' The hollow replied. Incidentally the substitute just ignored him from that point on.
"Alright, that should do it…" Makarov trailed off.
The elderly wizard tossed the wooden badge back to Ichigo, shortly after which the substitute caught it within the palm of his right hand and scowled back at the source of the throw.
"If this doesn't work, I will not be happy." Ichigo stated angrily.
"Maybe not, but I can think of someone who would be…" Makarov muttered underneath his breath, chuckling slightly at the sight of the still shell-shocked Erza Scarlet that stood at his side.
A moment later Ichigo used the badge, after which the exact same sequence of events happened in that the aura encompassed his body and quickly dissipated. Thankfully, though, his clothes were, in fact, present this time around.
"Awww…" Cana groaned disappointedly, which elicited a slight growl of annoyance from the substitute.
"See, problem solved." Makarov stated.
"Lucky me." Ichigo remarked sarcastically.
"Oh, by the way, while you're here… I have something for you." Makarov said, reaching into the pocket of his hoodie as he did so.
"Really? What do you need?" Ichigo asked curiously.
"Actually, this involves Erza as well…" Makarov replied.
The redheaded wizard then broke out of her dazed state and looked over at the master upon hearing her name be mentioned. She too was curious as to what was to be requested of her, and upon seeing two pieces of paper being presented, one to her and one to Ichigo, her curiosity only grew.
"Well don't just stand there like idiots, take 'em…" Makarov said amusedly.
A moment later the two Fairy Tail wizards complied, though upon seeing the paper itself they were only more interested in what exactly was being asked of them. Erza, though, was much more enthused upon realizing what was going to occur.
'This is…' Erza thought out of disbelief. It was almost a dream come true on her part.
"This is a job that I need you two to go on. You see, the reason is that I…" Makarov began.
He, however, found himself stopping in his speech as a result of Erza rather speedily taking off out the door. She did so with such velocity, in fact, that dust seemed to shoot up from her feet as she continued to move on.
"Well, she seems enthusiastic…" Makarov commented, sweatdropping slightly.
"I guess she kinda just understood what you were asking and went to pack…" Ichigo reasoned.
After all, they had just been presented with the request paper itself and very clearly it was a description, albeit vague, of a job request. The fact that the master had already told them that he wanted them to take care of it should already have served as enough information.
"Somehow I doubt she completely understands…" Makarov replied, chuckling to himself.
"What do you mean, old man?" Ichigo asked curiously.
"Well, you see, Erza left before I had a chance to finish explaining… you see, I wanted you two to go on this assignment alongside Mirajane. She hasn't been on any assignments in quite some time, and she's been saying how she's wanted to get back into things, so I figured that now is as good a time as any." Makarov explained.
"Oh, so have you already told Mira bout it?" Ichigo inquired.
"No… not yet at least. I plan to go tell her now, but, in the meantime, I'd ask that you go pack and get ready. I'd like for the three of you to leave as soon as is possible." Makarov stated.
"Got it." Ichigo simply replied.
Fairy Tail Guildhall: Back Room, Some Time Later…
"Mira, you back here?" Makarov called out as he entered the vast room containing hundreds upon hundreds of their guilds records.
"Right here master!" Mira shouted back from her position on a ladder towards the back of the library section.
"Done so soon?" Makarov asked in a tone of mild surprise.
"Yup, all the records were rearranged just like you asked." Mira replied in a cheerful tone.
"Hmm… I see. Well done my dear." Makarov said contentedly.
The barmaid reached the bottom of the ladder and made her way over towards Makarov, her usual cheerful expression present all the while. She took note, however, that the master had yet to leave, meaning that in all likelihood he needed to speak to her about something.
"Is there anything else you need me to do?" Mira asked, quirking a curious brow.
"Let's see… ah, yes, in fact there is. I need you to take care of…" Makarov began.
There was a brief pause as the esteemed Wizard Saint shifted through the pockets of his orange hoodie, which lasted several seconds until he finally found what he had been searching for.
"…this." Makarov said, presenting a piece of parchment that clearly came from one of the job request boards.
"Master, what is…" Mira began, only to stop instantaneously upon reading the text of the mission flyer.
'This is…' She thought.
Before her eyes was indisputably an S-Class mission that the guild had just received. The reward was huge, it was advertised as extremely dangerous, and the need for this mission to be completed was classified as urgent. To say the demoness was surprised was an understatement.
"Hehe, didn't see that comin', did ya?" Makarov asked humorously.
"M-Master, I'm not entirely sure if I really want to go on this mission…" Mira trialed off.
There were several reasons for her saying this, however the main one was simply because she refused to allow Erza any more time to 'bond' with Ichigo. S-Class missions were indeed high pay, but they all held to potential to be exceedingly long.
"Oh? But you didn't let me finish… since this is your first S-Class quest in quite a while, you won't be going on this alone. I've asked Ichigo and…" Makarov said, only to be cut off.
"Really?! When do we leave?" Mira squealed girlishly, a bright smile coming onto her features.
"Yes, really… and you are to leave as soon as you are able. I suggest packing your bags and meeting out front of the guildhall, that's what I told Ichigo and Er…" Makarov replied, sweatdropping slightly.
"Thanks Master Makarov, Ichigo and I won't let you down!" Mira chirped before running off to speak with the other member of her soon-to-be group as she finished.
"But Mira, he isn't the only…" Makarov began, reaching a hand out but only as a gesture given that the barmaid was completely gone before he managed to speak.
The elderly guild master released a slight sigh, rubbing his head in a slightly bewildered manner.
"Oh well… she'll figure it out eventually." Makarov thought aloud.
Magnolia: Natsu's Home
"I can't believe this!" Natsu exclaimed in an agitated manner, pacing back and forth along the hard wooden floor of his residence.
"What do you mean? The master asked me to go with her and Erza… also I promised I'd help Mira out if she ever decided to go on a mission." Ichigo replied.
"Yeah, but why do you get to be the only one to go?! I wanna go on an S-Class mission too ya know!" Natsu shouted childishly.
"The old man said he didn't want anyone but the three of us going on it. Even when I asked if you could tag along, he said no." Ichigo replied as he continued to pack his things within a suitcase.
"This sucks! Why can't the old man just let me go with you?!" Natsu pouted.
"Aye! We could totally beat that thing or person the mission needs us to!" Happy shouted excitedly, thrusting his fist into the air in a triumphant fashion.
"Did you even read the request…" Ichigo sighed out.
"…no." Happy replied evenly.
"Okay, look, how about the next mission we go on has to be together? I'll try my best to finish up quickly with this one as well, so it shouldn't be all that long." Ichigo offered.
"Tch… I'm still pissed off." Natsu grumbled, crossing his arms in a child-like manner.
"Look at it this way, with Erza gone you and Gray can beat the crap out of each other as much as you want." Ichigo said.
"That… makes me feel a bit better, actually." Natsu said, a small grin crossing his lips.
"Aye, but this mission must be a big deal if the master is sending Mira, Erza, and Ichigo. What was the job request anyway?" Happy questioned, sounding somewhat worried.
"We need to show up to Aster City and report to the mayor for the full details. The ad said that recently there has been suspicious activity in the nearby mountains, and the request said it was urgent. I don't know the details because none were really given, but I assume we'll figure it out when we get there." Ichigo replied.
"That sounds really scary…" Happy trailed off worriedly.
"Don't worry, little buddy, ain't nothin' out there that can beat him. Right, Ichigo?" Natsu asked with a large grin.
"I don't know about that… but, regardless, I'll come back alive, and so will Mira and Erza." Ichigo replied, choosing to be modest in a sense. Just because nothing he had seen in this world could beat him so far didn't mean there wasn't something like that looming on the horizon.
"Aye!" Happy chirped.
Magnolia: Erza's Residence
The scarlet-haired beauty currently stood with a bright smile on her face as she prepared her myriad suitcases for the coming trip. When the master had first informed her of the job, she had been interested, but the fact that she was going to be accompanied by Ichigo made it all the better.
Last time they were together without Mira, she had also had the added company of Natsu, Gray, Lucy, and Happy. Now, it was quite literally just the two of them. With the image of what happened with a certain white-haired demon earlier this morning still fresh in her mind, she felt this was a form of divine justice.
'Take that, Mira…' Erza thought condescendingly.
It was perfectly true that she had no compunction against leaving Mira behind in the dust. This was, after all, a war in its own right, and she knew perfectly well that very soon it would have to draw to a close.
In the beginning, Erza was slightly nervous, mostly because she believed she had a distinct inability to outright confess her feelings to Ichigo. That was why she agreed to allow him to choose. However, she no longer had any doubt in her mind that she could at the very least tell him she thought of him as more than just a friend and desired him to view her as such.
The scarlet-haired woman's cheeks became the same color as her flawless hair at the thought of an admission of attraction, but something had just been urging her to take the final plunge since their experience at the Tower of Heaven.
When they had first met, he had been the first person that had ever not been afraid of her as she currently acted. He had been the first person to realize so quickly that beneath her rough exterior was a person who fought for nothing less than her family, her guild, those that she cherished more than anything else. As a comrade in arms, he had saved her more than any other person had. As a man, he caused her heart to race and her mind to go blank for reasons she couldn't explain.
Knowing all of these things and more, Erza wasn't going to let her embarrassment or lack of experience in romantic relationships get in her way. She believed that if anyone would ever be able to make such a thing easy, it would be Ichigo, and with that in mind she slammed her final suitcase shut and prepared to leave with a content smirk present on her lips.
"Sorry Mira… it's nothing personal." Erza said, a slight touch of guilt present in her tone.
Magnolia: Strauss Residence
"B-Big sis! You really shouldn't be goin' on this mission… I mean, isn't it a bit too soon?" Elfman asked in an effort to talk his elder sibling out of going on the mission.
There were two reasons that Elfman didn't want for his sister to take the job request. The first, and lesser of the two, had actually been what he had just said. It had only been two weeks or so since Mira had manifested her powers once again. Given that this was the case, it was only natural for him to expect a bit of rustiness in her combat abilities and there was a distinct possibility that she could get hurt.
"I'll be fine, Elfman… after all, Ichigo will be going with me." Mira replied, her smile slightly increasing in size as she continued to pack.
That, however, was the secondary reason that the stout Fairy Tail wizard desperately wanted his sister not to go on the mission. Ichigo was a great person, but Elfman was far too nervous about his sister's attraction for the orange-haired teen to admit that maybe the two would find happiness together.
Ichigo may have been powerful, he may have been noble, he may have even been the most perfect example of what it was to be a man that Elfman had ever seen, which was really saying something, but that didn't change the fact that being in a relationship with Mira was something that just felt off.
Any other person in the world could be dating Ichigo and Elfman wouldn't have cared, in all honesty he may have been happy for them, but Mira was a different story altogether. Plus, there were also the constant fears of how far the relationship would go, and whenever that question popped into the young Strauss's mind, his head would nearly explode.
Also there was the fact that if Ichigo did end up ever doing anything wrong, Elfman couldn't really do anything to directly hurt him. In fact, all he could do would be to stand tall, yell a lot, and then hope that Ichigo wouldn't retaliate. The entire situation really just put him in an awkward position in which he would just rather not be.
"Y-Yeah… I-I kn-know that…" Elfman stuttered out nervously.
"Then what's the problem? I know Ichigo will protect me if I get in trouble… he always seems to…" Mira said, her voice going quiet as she finished.
Regardless of whether or not she knew it or not, Mira stopped packing her suitcase and just looked down towards the clothing she had already gathered, a warm smile present on her lips and a light blush crossing her cheeks.
At this, Elfman wanted to slam his head against a nearby wall, mainly because there was no way around the facts of the current situation. His sister, Fairy Tail's demon, was, beyond any measurable shadow of a doubt, smitten with Ichigo Kurosaki.
The reason this prompted the white-haired man to feel the desire to inflict pain onto himself was simply because he began to picture a situation in which the two were completely alone, Mira would confess, and then, perhaps, in the heat of the moment, Ichigo would…
"Yourat bastard…" Elfman growled out, restraining the volume of his voice by strongly biting the high collar of his jacket. He was very much so happy that his elder sibling hadn't heard him say that as, in truth, he had meant to keep it inside the confines of his mind but found himself unable to do so.
For Mira's part, she just kept thinking on what would come of the S-Class quest itself. Completing the actual job itself was actually secondary, though. The primary thing she wished to accomplish was a personal mission she had set for herself since the time she visited Lisanna's grave and none other than Ichigo had shown up to comfort her. Since that time, her feelings had only grown stronger, and it was up to the point that she couldn't allow any more time to pass before she expressed how she felt.
The simple thought of her confession being met with reciprocation made her heart jolt and her eyes slightly teary, but even so it was just a thought. To turn that wish into a reality, she would first need to meet up with the orange-haired teen and head towards the town that had sent the request.
"Anyway… I-I'm really looking forward to this mission, so my decision is final." Mira replied, convincingly shutting her suitcase and facing her sibling with an expression that essentially told him to be silent.
"U-Ummm… I d-don't have any issues with that… none at all…" Elfman replied with a fake smile, clearly lying through his teeth.
"Good." Mira said, her usual bright and cheery smile returning.
"Wait…" Elfman called out, stopping his elder sibling just as she was about to exit the house.
Mira turned and directed a curious look at her sibling, not entirely sure quite what he needed to say. Even if it had anything to do with the mission she was about to go on, he had to know by now that it wouldn't matter.
"Would you mind if I see you off?" Elfman asked with a small but forced smile. In truth he just wanted to speak with Ichigo about a few things.
"Um… sure, I don't mind." Mira replied
Magnolia: Streets leading to Fairy Tail's Guildhall, Some Time Later…
Mira and Elfman walked towards their home away from home with distinctly different expressions. The eldest of the two was completely content, if not downright beaming with joy, while her sibling was much more nervous, and it showed rather clearly.
While he had the intent of speaking to Ichigo when he asked to come along, Elfman hadn't the slightest idea of what he was going to say. After all, even he knew it wasn't his place to outright say how his sister felt before explaining to Ichigo that he had best tread carefully. With that in mind, there really wasn't any avenue he could approach the conversation that allowed him to delicately suggest he didn't want 'certain things' to happen between the two.
'If they were married, that'd be different…' Elfman thought.
Perhaps he could demand that Ichigo take responsibility for being the first man his sister desired as a boyfriend, but he had to rule that out for now given that openly requesting such a thing violated the principal of not telling the orange-haired teen how his sister felt. If they ended up dating, then perhaps he could say something like that then, but he had a sneaking suspicion that Mira would subsequently beat him to death with his own dismembered arm. All in all the end result was less than preferable but also very likely to occur in that situation.
"Why me…" Elfman mumbled beneath his breath.
"Pardon?" Mira asked in a blank tone, turning to look at her younger brother with a quirked brow.
"N-Nothing…" Elfman replied, a singular bead of sweat dripping from his brow.
As they neared the guildhall, the stout white-haired man could only panic inwardly due to the fact that he hadn't remotely come up with anything to say. He now just assumed that he'd have to come up with something on the spot, which obviously wasn't a comforting assumption to make.
'Come on… please, let something stop this!' Elfman thought pleadingly.
The two then stopped directly in front of the guild, however upon doing so they noticed something quite strange and stopped in place as a result of this. The entrance was as they remembered, but a rather large cart of luggage that belonged to none other than Erza Scarlet was present in all of its superfluous glory.
In front of the cart stood the very same scarlet-haired wizard that owned it, who stood in place with a small scowl on her face and her eyes shut in an annoyed manner.
Off to the side, Ichigo stood in place as well, though he kept an uncaring expression on his features. A moment later, however, he noticed that the two Strauss siblings had arrived and in response walked forward to them slightly in order to address them.
"Hey Mira, Elfman." Ichigo greeted.
"Hey Ichigo…" Mira replied, though she just continued to stare at her redheaded comrade with a blank expression.
"So, Ichigo, why is Erza here? I thought you were going on this mission only with Mi…" Elfman began.
He was forced to stop upon said redheaded teen opening her eyes and directing a fiery glare directly at the woman who had yet to be named in his previous sentence. Though it wasn't directed at him, Elfman still lost his ability to speak on a temporary basis.
It also had something to do with the fact that his sister returned the glare in full force, but Ichigo was focused on Elfman and as a result didn't really pay any attention to it.
"Something wrong?" Ichigo asked with a quirked brow.
"N-No! So what's the deal with the luggage? That ain't yours, right?" Elfman inquired good-naturedly, feeling slightly uncomfortable given that the aura's coming off of both his sister and Fairy Tail's queen gave him the impression that a cataclysmic confrontation was about to erupt.
"As if… all this crap belongs to Erza, and I don't get why there's so much because she has Requip. I just shoved my single suitcase onto it, which barely fit, by the way." Ichigo replied.
"I have told you before, it never hurts to be prepared! Also, most of my Magic Space contains my armors and weapons!" Erza replied defensively, taking her sights off of Mira and directing her attention towards the orange-haired teen.
"Take it easy, Erza. I was just kidding…" Ichigo said.
The scarlet-haired woman averted her eyes sheepishly for a moment due to her overly defensive reaction, but a second thereafter she went back to glaring at Mira. This continued until the substitute actually addressed the current situation and made everything brought to light.
"Anyway, Mira, you can just put your suitcase on the cart as well. We need to head over to the train station soon." Ichigo stated.
The white-haired demoness cringed slightly and adopted an expression of mild shock. While she could gather what was happening, having it confirmed was something different altogether.
"I-Is that so…" Mira said through gritted teeth.
"So… to be clear, both Mira and Erza will be going with you?" Elfman asked with a raised brow.
"Yeah, the old man asked me and Erza to do it and then said he wanted to have Mira go on it as well since she… well, since she has her powers again." Ichigo replied.
Elfman stood in place for a brief moment with a blank expression on his face. It appeared as if the information took a second to process, but it became very clear when it did. His mood, while previously sullen and
'YES!' Elfman thought triumphantly, fighting the urge to scream that one word at the top of his lungs.
So long as Erza Scarlet was present on any mission whatsoever, there was no chance in hell that anything romantic happening whatsoever, be it between her and someone else or between those that went with her. He'd, of course, never say that out loud otherwise he'd immediately be beaten within an inch of his life.
"Hehehe… well, have fun!" Elfman said with a cheerful grin spreading across his lips.
Ichigo looked at the stout man with an expression of deep confusion. In truth that may very well have been the happiest he had ever seen Elfman, and it just felt wrong for some reason.
'Why the hell does he look so cheery?' Ichigo wondered.
'Gee, I don't know. I mean, why would he be, Ichigo? Can you think of any reason he would be happy right now… any reason at all?' His inner hollow asked in a mocking tone.
'I don't need your crap right now.' Ichigo growled back.
'Clam down, Ichigo. Learn to take a joke… or is the redhead rubbing off on you that much?' The hollow said jokingly.
'First of all, she's gotten better… at least I think.' Ichigo replied, being unsure of his statement. Erza had most certainly gotten less robotic during the time he had known her, but to what degree was up for a significant amount of debate.
'And again, you can't think of any reason why that might be?' The hollow questioned, his tone now being one of slight hope.
'What the hell are you talking about? How should I know the answer to that?' Ichigo asked in an annoyed tone.
'How do you even dress yourself in the morning?' The hollow wondered aloud.
'Shut up! Also, I still don't know what you're talking about!' Ichigo shouted back.
'That's painfully obvious… no, seriously, it's so obvious that it hurts me, physically. I am truly hurt by how clearly stupid you are.' The hollow replied in a snarky manner.
'I wish you'd just be quiet again.' Ichigo growled out.
'Yeah, and I wish a lot of things, all of which haven't come true yet. Now shut up and go back to reality. You've just been standing still for like three minutes staring off into the streets.' The hollow stated.
Ichigo's eyes almost immediately widened out of surprise, mostly because he never really lost focus like that and thought that it might come across as suspicious. However, when he observed what was in front of him he no longer saw Mirajane.
At first he was confused, but a second later he turned to his right where Erza had been and saw that the two were currently standing directly in front of one another. He found it odd that they hadn't noticed him spacing out, but since that worked to his benefit he decided to ignore it.
"Hey guys, you two ready to get going?" Ichigo abruptly questioned.
The two Fairy Tail wizards turned and looked at him as if they had been caught by surprise, something that confused Ichigo though he didn't voice it. What he did not know was the fact that the two had just been scowling and glaring at one another during the time he had spaced out, so they hadn't actually known if he had been watching or not.
"Y-Yeah, we were just… talking…" Mira replied.
"Yes… we were speaking to each other about the mission." Erza added, actually managing to lie rather well given how she traditionally felt about doing such a thing.
"Hmm… okay, then I'll go tell the old man we're heading out." Ichigo said before walking into the guildhall.
The split second that he entered the doors to Fairy Tail's emblematic building the two female wizards butted heads and began to growl at one another as lighting shot between their eyes.
"What's the big idea hijacking my mission with Ichigo?" Mira asked possessively.
"You're mission? Since when we're you under the impression that was the case? I know very well that I was the first to be asked to accompany him." Erza countered, though that technically wasn't true.
"The master asked me to go on it since he wanted me to get practice. He said Ichigo would be going as well since it was a big job." Mira stated.
"What exactly did the master say to you?" The two questioned in unison.
Both Mira and Erza thought on what was said and adopted an expression as such. Each was entirely certain that they were asked to go, but there was a distinct possibility that the master may have desired to say more before they respectively took off to prepare.
"There… may have been more to what he told me but I believe I left before being able to hear it." Erza admitted.
"The master may have been about to say something else, but I also left before I could hear…" Mira replied, her tone and demeanor losing any semblance of threat just as that of her redheaded friend.
The two stood in silence, averting their eyes for a brief moment due to the fact that each had, begrudgingly, admitted their own fault. This meant that, obviously, neither of them really had a right to claim the other was 'tagging along'.
"I suppose I have no issues with taking this mission on with you as well." Erza mused, deciding to be the less childish of the two.
"I guess I don't mind you being there either." Mira replied, though inwardly she knew that statement to only be mostly-true.
"However, since we are both accompanying Ichigo on this mission, I will state my intent to finish this contest between us once and for all. If you get in my way, I will not hesitate to take drastic measures." Erza stated matter-of-factly.
Mira's eyes almost instantly widened out of shock at the redhead's declaration. She had expected some kind of robotic threat, but for Erza to say she'd 'take drastic measures' was ambiguous enough that it actually worried her.
"Well I may as well tell you that I intend to do the same." Mira replied, stealing her resolve and speaking with as much conviction as she could.
"I see… then I would like to state that there shall be, as you said previously, no hard feelings should he choose to court one of us." Erza said.
In truth she was quite confident that it would be herself that 'won' in the end, but that didn't mean she was entirely happy about that particular result. Mira was a good friend, and she'd like to think it was a mutual desire between them to keep said friendship going in the aftermath of what was almost inevitable at this point.
"What are you, an eighty year-old woman? It's called dating, Erza… or should I say, grandma." Mira jibbed in a condescending manner.
"I-I know exactly what it is! Do not mock my speech simply because it is superior to yours!" Erza exclaimed, a small blush covering her cheeks given that her tone of speaking was indeed something she had tried to work on. Coming off as robotic did have its disadvantages, after all.
"Superior? Well, whatever helps you sleep at night…" Mira thought aloud, cocking her head sideways in a dismissive manner.
"You have yet to actually respond to what I said." Erza pointed out, getting back to the matter at hand.
"Yeah, no hard feelings… but just don't start yelling at me when you're disappointed with his choice." Mira replied, smirking devilishly at her comrade.
"Hah! It will be the other way around, succubus." Erza replied.
"Hmph." Mira huffed, shutting her eyes and crossing her arms underneath her breasts.
Erza did the same a moment later, but the two quickly broke out of their collective ignorance of one another in order to address the third member of their departing team who had just exited the guildhall.
"Alright, the old man knows we're heading out. You two ready?" Ichigo questioned upon walking up to the two female wizards.
"Yes." The two answered in unison, speaking with quite a bit more conviction and determination than Ichigo was actually expecting.
'I guess they're just really excited or something…' Ichigo thought, sweatdropping slightly.
'...You're an idiot.' The hollow commented.
Aboard the Train: Railway towards Aster, Some Time Later
The journey thus far had been perfectly uneventful, in fact, perhaps too much so. Since they had gotten onto the train and began their expectedly lengthy trip, none of them had said a word.
There was a momentary dispute on the seating arrangement, but that ended up with Ichigo sitting on one side of the booth while Mira and Erza sat directly across from him side-by-side. However, after that had occurred, the two just looked down at their laps with disappointed looks present on their features while Ichigo chose to look out the window and enjoy the passing scenery.
Despite the fact that this was the first time in a while things had been remotely quiet, the lack of speaking was starting to become way too noticeable for his tastes.
"You two have been awfully quiet." Ichigo commented.
"Have we?" The two asked blankly, prompting the substitute to sweatdrop at their collective speech.
"Um… well, yeah." Ichigo replied.
There was once again an ensuing silence, which in part lasted due to the fact that Ichigo expected the two to elaborate on why they weren't talking. However, once it became clear they didn't intend to do so, he opted to make his desire to know the reason known.
"Any particular reason why?" Ichigo inquired.
"Nope…" Mira replied.
"Not really." Erza said.
"Okay…" Ichigo trialed off.
Once more, silence coated the booth, which was made all the more worse due to the fact that they were literally the only people present on the section of the train in which they sat. The only semblance of consistent speech was the sound of the train quickly moving along the rails of the tracks.
'Wow, I can feel the awkward from all the way in here.' The hollow commented.
'Why are you so chatty all of a sudden? Can't you just stay quiet like you usually do?' Ichigo questioned.
'Why can't you just enjoy my company? Let's be honest, I'm the only one talking to you right now.' The hollow countered.
'Why can't I? Gee, I don't know, maybe it has to do with the fact that you've tried to kill me several times in the past.' Ichigo said in a voice of heavy sarcasm.
'You're still mad about that?' The hollow asked, clearly believing that he shouldn't.
'…you're kidding me, right?' Ichigo said.
'Hey, it made ya stronger, didn't it? Think of it as a little tough love.' The hollow replied.
'You actively tried to kill me, so under no circumstance would I call it 'tough love'.' Ichigo stated.
'Quit bein' a baby. Besides, think of all the times I could have tried to kill you but didn't. When you stack it up, I never really spent a majority of my time trying to do that.' The hollow pointed out.
'So I'm supposed to be grateful because of that?' Ichigo sneered.
'There's just no talking to you, is there?' The hollow mused.
'Unfortunately, yes, you can talk to me, and I can't seem to get you to shut the hell up.' Ichigo replied.
'Fine, fine, I'll keep quiet…' The hollow replied uncaringly.
Shortly thereafter, though, Ichigo realized that the speech on the part of his hollow was, in fact, better than the dead silence that ensued in the booth where he currently sat. Still, he'd never admit that.
"So, what do you two think of this mission?" Ichigo asked conversationally.
"Hmm… well, I think that the request was a bit too vague for my tastes." Erza replied honestly.
"Same… though I'm not too worried about that. What bothers me is that the request itself was sent specifically to our guild and that it's marked as extremely urgent. I mean, if it's so important for the job to be done, I'd have expected other guilds to have received the request."
"Wait, seriously? That request was sent exclusively to our guild?" Ichigo uttered confusedly.
"You didn't know that?" Mira asked with a quirked brow.
"Nope." Ichigo simply replied.
"Nor was I…" Erza admitted.
"W-Well that's not all to surprising… after all, I'm sure the master didn't tell you, and the only reason I know is because I help out with the bookkeeping." Mira mused.
"Still, though, I could understand why they'd send it exclusively to Fairy Tail. After all, we are the most formidable guild in all of Fiore as things currently stand." Erza stated.
"Yeah… but that is still a cause for concern." Ichigo commented.
"What do you mean?" Mira questioned.
"Think about it… if this request was sent exclusively to Fairy Tail based on the sole fact that we're the strongest guild in Fiore, wouldn't that mean the job itself isn't something a lesser guild could handle?" Ichigo reasoned.
"You mean to say that the mission itself will be rather dangerous…" Erza guessed.
"It's just a hunch, but if what Mira said is true, then yeah." Ichigo replied, sounding calm despite the grave nature of his words.
"That just makes the vague nature of our request all the more displeasing…" Erza thought aloud.
"Hey, it isn't like the three of us won't be able to handle it. The master did send us for reason, right?" Ichigo assured.
"I don't know if sending three of us was necessary though. After all, I could deal with a certain someone not being here with us…" Mira commented, glaring off to her side at the scarlet-haired woman as she did so.
"The feeling is mutual, of that I can assure you." Erza shot back.
'Something's off here…' Ichigo thought.
'Oh good, he's aware.' The hollow sarcastically mused.
'Shut it.' Ichigo commanded.
The two strongest Fairy Tail females continued on with their glaring contest, but it ended the second that a very peculiar animal decided to flock to their window.
Off to their side and right before their very eyes, a bird that had solid orange feathers with black endings on its wings. It took its place resting on the railing outside the window of the booth, holding onto it with its feet and appearing as if it had not a care in the world.
"Huh… this may be the first time I've ever seen an orange-colored bird." Mira thought aloud.
"I believe this is my first time seeing one as well." Erza stated blankly.
"Same… but I think it's kinda cool. It looks unique." Ichigo commented.
At this, both Mira and Erza chuckled slightly, though that was due to the choice of words that the orange-haired teen had used to describe the orange-feathered bird. It wasn't necessarily strange, but it was nevertheless humorous.
"What's so…" Ichigo began, only to stop upon the cooing sound of another bird gracing his ears.
He alongside both Mira and Erza turned to see two birds latch onto the railing, taking their place at the left and right side, respectively, of the bird that was already present. Oddly enough, both of the birds were also peculiar in terms of color, at least to some degree.
The first was a bird that was pure white, even more so than snow itself. It radiated brilliantly and gave off such beauty that it was almost astonishing. The other, in much the same way, had scarlet-colored feathers that shined just as brightly and just as beautifully as the other.
"Wow, those two birds are really… pretty, don't ya think?" Ichigo mused.
Mira and Erza each looked at their own hair and blushed slightly at this. Despite having not been directly complimented, they at least grasped the symbolism.
It was then, though, that the two freshly arrived birds nestled their heads affectionately into the neck of the orange-feathered bird that had initially brought their attention to the railing outside the window.
"Huh, first time I've seen that, too." Ichigo thought aloud, releasing a slight chuckle as he did so.
"Yes… the scarlet bird looks to be quite happy. If only the white harpy wasn't present." Erza stated calmly, not even bothering to glare at her technical rival as she did so. The insult was already direct enough as it was.
"Huh?" Ichigo uttered confusedly.
"I'm with Ichigo on this one. To me it looks like the redhead should back off… after all, the white one landed first and is clearly happy with the orange bird." Mira stated.
"They landed at the exact same time and you know it!" Erza exclaimed.
"You wish!" Mira shot back.
The two began to argue, which became an immense source of confusion for Ichigo. He couldn't really understand how the sight of three, beautiful, and quite honestly rare-looking birds would bring about some kind of friendly squabble. With how they were glaring at each other, though, perhaps 'friendly' wasn't the right word.
'Talk about irony…' The hollow commented.
'The hell are you talking about?' Ichigo groaned tiredly.
'Nothing… nothing at all.' The hollow replied.
At this, the substitute just released a sigh of mild annoyance. His two female companions were now openly bickering with one another, but he wasn't really intent on listening to it.
'You know what, the silence was better…' Ichigo thought. It was going to be a long train ride to Aster, of that he was extremely sure.
A/N Okay, so once again I will just say that the next chapter will be posted on next Monday. Oh, and as an FYI, this will be the last time I think I add a Reviews: section that answers every question. What I mean by that is that I will probably just PM people and dumb it down to those who don't allow PM's being the questions I directly answer. If it's something more than one person brings up, I will probably just send something in the Explanations: section like I usually do.
Explanations:
Aster: Aster is a type of flower, actually, which keeps in the trend of Fiore's towns all being names after flowers/plants. I just figured that I should add this in as just a bit of trivia for anyone who cared.
The Combat Pass: I sort of tied it to Requip magic in a way that seems relatively plausible. Either way, it also fixes the body problem while also keeping him as a human and Soul Reaper.
The missions itself: I deliberately left out the major details in this chapter as the main focus of the next one will be the background info of the mission and the like.
Reviews:
hollowichigo12: I use it depending on the vernacular of the character in question. I try to get their typical pattern of speech and show that through my writing.
Kryptic Paradox: No, not really, and you'll find out why by the time this story is over.
XxMomomunchxX: Can't say, that'd just spoil it ;P.
enigma95: Wish I could help you, but I haven't really been reading a lot since I started writing xD.
hunter2424: I've said this before, but I do not mind reiterating. It is possible that in the future I will add a third girl to the Harem if backed by popular demand, and I have set up avenues for that so that it could realistically be a select few other characters that have had interactions with Ichigo.
blarg7865: I cannot answer your first question, but I can answer the second. I do in fact have another crossover of Bleach and Fairy Tail in store for the future, but it will take place a great deal further into Fairy Tail than this one did. If your question is more of a general one, I will say that a vast majority of my future stories do not follow an exceedingly large number of canon events that occur within their respective universes, which is mostly in part to the timelines thereof.
Dp11: No, not really any insignificant OC's in this arc. There will be a few, but my plans for them are my own. At the moment Ichigo has little need to train, so he most likely won't. That is a very basic answer, and I can't really go in-depth.
Acerious Powamer: Well, there are a few reasons as to why I made him dense, and I will say right off the bat that he really is that dense. Just look at his reactions to Orihime Inoue and how he likely views his actions of 'risking it all' to save both her and Rukia at separate points in time. The lesser reason that I did it was because if I had Ichigo be alert to the affections of woman, it eliminates a minor character flaw. By that point he's just one step away from becoming a womanizing playboy, which is just not who he is xD.
LastWriter: Can't answer that.
GirlFish: I've got no idea, but it will be quite a few.
Kurosaki Ranma062: Birthday celebrations will probably not be a thing, to be honest.
BIGOLLAB0: Can't answer that.