Mirajane sighed wearily as she walked through the city, which was located near Valentin's mansion.
"Is everything okay?" Ryker asked worriedly for her.
"I am." Mira looked at him casually. "Just a little tired".
"This is not normal. You're not getting sick, are you?" Ryker put his hand on her forehead to check her temperature. "Your temperature is normal."
"It's nothing, Love. Don't worry," she said, continuing her walk through town and visiting every shop they came across.
"They're so cute together," Lucy commented, walking behind them, with her group of friends.
Fairy Tail's mages parted ways, some preferred to go to the city to see what was interesting and go shopping, others, however, stayed at the mansion and took advantage of what it had to offer. From a swimming pool to sports courts and game rooms, where magicians could have fun at will, in addition to a beautiful variety of drinks.
"They seem very happy together. I'm glad for them," Levy agreed with her best friend.
"Mira-nee has been happier lately. Looks like she worked things out with him and now they're fine," Lisanna said.
They watched the couple in front of them standing in front of a clothing store watching the window and the excitement with which Mira looked at the clothes and the annoyed expression that Ryker had on his face looking at his girlfriend – of course, his expression was only superficial , as there was always a smile on his face. Ryker and Mira went to the store next door and Mira jumped when she saw a fluffy lacy blouse, pointing to it and calling her boyfriend to check it out.
Further back, the other girls looked at them, delighted, and with a slight envy, with the dynamics of the couple.
"You can see that Ryker has changed. I would never have imagined him behaving this way when he first entered the guild." Lucy noticed how calm and cheerful he was next to Mira.
"I don't think he's changed. He's just letting out who he really is. Even if he only shows it to very close people.", Wendy smiled, talking to the other mages beside her.
"Is that true, Wendy?" Levy asked in surprise.
"Yes," the little Dragon Slayer nodded. "He's quite funny, actually, and he's easy to get along with."
"Oh, now I remember. You two are really close, aren't you!?", Levy ended up remembering that Wendy and Ryker got close a lot and treat each other like brothers.
Wendy blushed a little and smiled shyly. "We spent a lot of time together and he ended up showing the softer side of him."
They looked at the couple again as they did their own shopping. They noticed that Ryker said something that made Mirajane playfully push him away and laugh. It was true, he showed the softer side of him to people close to him, they smiled and were happy for them.
"Was he like that with you Erza?", Lucy asked.
The redhead looked at her and smiled, turning her face forward. "A little, but nothing like he is with Mira," she commented.
"That's because you weren't the right person for him," Levy said, looking at her slyly. Erza frowned and a vein pulsed in her temple. "Just like he wasn't the one for you. Why do you have to be Jellal...", Levy added, making the all-powerful Titania blush in embarrassment.
"That's irrelevant at the moment, Levy," Erza said irritably and blushing. The other girls laughed.
Everyone continued with their shopping all morning, and even though Ryker was starting to get annoyed with all the hassle and being forced to take all of Mira and Wendy's groceries, he held on. When lunch time came they decided to have lunch at a nearby cafe, which looked nice. Ryker and Mira were sitting at a table, separated from the others, having a moment of their own.
Mira grabbed a rag and wiped her boyfriend's gravy-stained mouth, smiling gracefully. Ryker glared at her, dipping a finger into the sauce and swiping it across her nose. She looked at him falsely indignantly and did the same to him. They laughed at themselves, in full bliss.
"Juvia thinks they are so cute together", she looked at them in wonder.
"A little too touchy-feely, in my opinion", Erza said looking at them with a bit of envy - or was it jealousy...?
"They're on their way to being one of the best couples in the guild," Lucy commented.
"Juvia agrees, but right behind her relationship with Gray-sama", she said dreamily and with a rosy tone in her cheeks.
"Of course..." Lucy commented sarcastically.
"Juvia looked at her darkly. "What do you mean, Rival of Love!?" she said through gritted teeth.
"Nothing, nothing!", the celestial mage defended herself.
"Well, I agree with Lucy. But definitely the best couple is Gajeel and me," Levy chimed in.
An argument broke out at their table, between Levy and Juvia, to see who was the best couple. The argument was interrupted with Erza proposing a game, when they returned to the mansion, to see who was the best couple. Obviously Titania's twisted mind wanted a reason to cause discord among the couples in the guild, as she was single.
Ryker felt a chill run down his spine, making him squirm in his chair.
"What is it?" Mira asked, seeing her boyfriend shaking out of nowhere and for no apparent reason.
"It's nothing, I think. I just feel like something really wrong is about to happen," he said and looked at the other table.
"This is completely ridiculous!" snarled Ryker.
"Now come on Ryker. What are you afraid of?", Erza said in a teasing tone.
"I refuse to play such a stupid game!" he yelled angrily.
"Come on, Love… It might be fun," Mira said happily.
"No way!" Ryker yelled. "This doesn't smell good," he looked suspiciously at Erza and the other girls.
They had returned to the mansion in the late afternoon and now they were trying to convince Mira and Ryker to accept the game Erza had proposed.
"This is ridiculous and I refuse to accept it. Let's go Mira!", he took her hand and dragged her outside, towards the garden.
"I thought he would take it better," Levy lamented.
"I don't know if I agreed with that either," Lucy said in exasperation.
Erza looked at her darkly. "This is no longer under discussion," she said authoritatively.
"But why do I have to participate with Natsu!?" Lucy yelled, vigorously waving her arms up and down uselessly, being pushed by Erza towards the rest of the guild.
Outside, in the garden, Ryker was lying on the grass under the canopy of a beautiful, leafy tree. His head was lying on Mira's lap, who was caressing him affectionately, while looking at the landscape around him.
"How absurd what those girls were proposing," he grumbled. "This could only have come out of Erza."
Mira looked at him and laughed. She found a couples game interesting, but she knew he wouldn't be comfortable doing that sort of thing, she revealed, but would like them to do something together with her friends in the near future. She would work for it.
"Erza is sometimes susceptible to these little games. But it wouldn't be bad for us to do something together with our friends and other couples", Mira said exposing her opinion.
He felt a slight guilt, maybe it was important for her to go out and do other things with people other than just him or just them. "Do you want to go back inside? We can still participate," he said, slightly annoyed.
"For today, I will let go. But we will participate in the next one. You have to get over that shyness of yours", she smiled and he couldn't help but admire and agree with her.
"As you wish," he said resignedly. "But anyway, there's something else worrying me more than that," he said seriously.
"What do you mean?", she asked intrigued.
"There's something strange about our host and his servant," Ryker said.
"I do not understand. What are you thinking?" Mira said confused.
"His inviting us to his house I didn't find anything unusual. In my world, it was common for nobles to call soldiers to their parties, especially those who received medals and decorations. But here's something different," he said with a serious look. "You know how paranoid I am when I get to a new place. I was watching everything and I noticed surveillance tears everywhere. Who would put surveillance on their own home?" he wondered.
Mira thought for a moment, analyzing what he'd said. "This is really weird. But Valentin has a lot of employees at his mansion and it's filled with works of art, maybe he did it for security," she mused.
"It might be. But taking away your own privacy because of it? It would be too stressful, who could take it?" he wondered. "Wasn't Lucy from a wealthy family?"
"It was, the Heartfilia . They were one of the richest and most powerful in Fiore," Mira replied.
"They had a lot of employees too and, as far as I know, she never mentioned being watched 24 hours a day with security tears, inside the house."
Mira thought about what he'd said and he was right, it didn't make sense. "You're right, people like them would hire trusted employees," she reasoned.
"Exactly." He looked at her. "Did you see! You're learning," he grinned silly at her.
Mirajane rolled her eyes and slapped him lightly with a gleeful smile. "Beast".
Ryker chuckled and his expression returned to seriousness. "Another thing bothering me is that Adam guy."
"What's wrong with him?", she asked intrigued.
"He's not just a butler. He noticed my uneasy aura with him when we arrived. It only lasted a fraction of a second, but he gave me a sideways look," Ryker said seriously. "Someone with no sense of magic wouldn't have noticed."
Mira might think it was just his imagination, jealousy maybe, but she trusted his instincts. Ryker wouldn't say that sort of thing if he wasn't sure, he wouldn't let silly jealousy interfere with his judgment.
"What do you think all this means?" she asked him, sensing that there might be more to all that cordial appearance.
"I still don't know," Ryker sighed. "It could be everything or it could be nothing. But we better keep an eye out," Mira agreed.
"Ryker," Mira called after a little while. "You said there were surveillance tears, right? Are there rooms in the rooms too?", she asked with a little worry in her voice.
He suddenly broke out in a cold sweat and a lump formed in his throat. He searched through his entire memory until he found the answer. "No, it doesn't," he replied, relieved and to Mira's relief, too.
Mira breathed a sigh of relief. "I think we better not do that again while we're here. I don't want our friends to hear us again. Once was too much embarrassment for a lifetime," she blushed at the memory.
Ryker looked disappointed, but she was right. "Maybe we can find another place where no one will hear us or see us," he offered an option.
"Ara, ara! Where would that be?", she asked not wanting to know the answer.
"I don't know, but those trees in the distance look cozy," he replied, laughing.
Mira slapped him again, and blushed at the suggestion. "Your perverted! I won't do you outdoors again."
It was getting dark when the couple went back inside the mansion, where everyone was gathered in a large room with several sofas and armchairs, some games and a bar with a bartender who served drinks to the invited wizards. The atmosphere of the place was nice and inviting and everyone in the guild was talking and drinking, in a pleasant atmosphere.
Ryker and Mira joined the others, enjoying the weather, grabbing a few drinks and socializing with the others.
"Where were you?" Gray asked.
"In the garden talking," Ryker said nonchalantly.
At that moment Valentin entered the room, with the guildmaster beside him, and caught everyone's attention, clapping his hands with a cheerful and cordial smile.
"Sorry for interrupting. Makarov and I were talking about various topics and we agreed that it would be interesting to demonstrate the powerful magic you have. What do you think?" he suggested.
"Like a competition of who's more powerful?" Natsu intruded excitedly and flamboyantly.
Valentin laughed at the Dragon Slayer's attitude, and smiled happily. "We can put it that way."
"I'm in!" he yelled. "I will show that my magic is the most powerful and the best of all", he laughed challenging the rest of the guild.
"Over my dead body, Salamander !" Gajeel yelled and challenged him back.
"Don't go thinking I'll be left out," Gray smiled.
"A competition is very manly, so am I," Elfman said with a raised fist.
"Let's show these kids who's boss," Laxus and his team entered the competition.
Before long, the excitement and uproar spread through all the guild members. They followed Valentin and the master into the garden, where an already prepared area was waiting for them.
"Fine, show me your powers, idiot mages. Give us everything we need to finish you off", Valentin thought as he headed towards the competition site.
In the surveillance room Albert was smiling sadistically as he analyzed the data received from Fairy Tail's mages. "This Valentin is a bastard, but he had a splendid idea. With the mages using their powers, I will be able to perfectly analyze the full extent of their strength, recovery rate and many other useful data. This will be very good for my research and of course for killing them... HAHAHA!" he laughed hysterically.
They all walked and walked out into the gigantic garden, where, in a far corner, a platform had been prepared for their performance. It was simple and without refinements or embellishments, suitable for free movement and the use of magic, without jeopardizing anything essential.
"So who will go first?" asked Valentin, introducing them to the arena.
"I will!", Natsu shouted, already climbing on the platform, excited and with a wide smile on his face.
"HEY! We haven't discussed it yet!", Gajeel yelled at the other Dragon Slayer, who pretended not to be with him.
"Leave it, Gajeel," Levy reassured him. "The best is always for last," she smiled at him. Gajeel looked at her and smiled, showing all his teeth.
"Of course!" he replied. "Don't delay, Salamander . The best is for last, gihihi ", Gajeel turned to the fire mage.
"I'm going to show you how powerful I've become," the Fire Dragon Slayer said defiantly to the rest of the guild. "And that my magic is the best!" he laughed boasting.
"Would you shut up and get on with it!" Ryker yelled impatiently. "Everyone already knows that!" he had an irritated, impatient frown.
Mira, beside him and with a smiling face, clung to his arm. "Have more patience. Natsu has always been like that." Ryker snorted in resignation.
Natsu turned forward, aiming at the open field. He took a deep breath before starting his attack. He lit his fist with swirling flames and shouted, " Puragtory Slashing Dragon Fire !", unleashing a gigantic bolt of fire across the field in front of him, incinerating everything in its path.
No one could say it wasn't impressive. His strength was visible and palpable, causing astonishment at the strength he displayed and excitement at the same time. Natsu came down from the platform looking victorious and proud of himself, satisfied with the feat, and he knew that he didn't even use his most powerful blow and that he had a lot more to give.
"Nice hit Salamander ", Gajeel said as soon as Natsu walked past him.
"I want to see how strong you've gotten too," the fire mage looked at him defiantly.
Gajeel smiled. "I'll show you", they both smiled at each other.
One by one the mages climbed into the arena and demonstrated their best magic. Even after the great feat of the fire mage, the other performances were no less impressive. They all showed the true strength of the guild and its mages, much to Makarov's joy and pride.
In Mirajane's turn, Ryker was curious as to what she would demonstrate.
"Looking forward to seeing what Nee-san will do?", Lisanna asked, watching his watchful gaze.
"Something like, sister-in-law," he replied and ruffled her hair.
"You might be surprised, brother-in-law," she laughed and nudged him with her elbow. Ryker looked at her puzzled, but returned his attention to the stage for the performances.
Mira went upstairs and introduced herself to everyone politely. With a beautiful smile she flashed and transformed into… Ryker, in front of everyone, making them all laugh, at the same time taking her boyfriend by surprise.
"What…what the fuck!?" Ryker yelled, not believing what he was seeing.
"Mira is also proficient in transformation magic," Lisanna explained, laughing at Ryker's reaction to seeing his girlfriend transform into him. Ryker was speechless, it was too weird to see himself, even more so in his girlfriend's body.
"I... I didn't know she could do that," he said in amazement.
" Mira-nee has many skills. Don't go thinking you know her, there's still a lot for you to know", Elfman told him proudly of his sister.
Ryker listened attentively and looked ahead, seeing his girlfriend transform into other guild members was impressive.
"I'm going to know everything about her, even if it takes my whole life to do so," he said, smiling in his Mira's pride and satisfaction. Elfman and Lisanna looked at each other and smiled.
As soon as Mirajane finished the performance, she went downstairs and walked towards her brothers and Ryker, who were looking at her in astonishment.
"I hope you enjoyed it," she said shyly to Ryker.
He smiled and nodded, affirming his satisfaction with her. "Every day you surprise me more", he said and kissed her lightly on the mouth.
"Glad you liked it," she smiled graciously.
"There's nothing you do that I dislike," he smiled out of the corner of his mouth. He hugged her and pulled her close to him, she wrapped her arms around him and they kissed lightly.
"Awww ! You are so beautiful together", Lisanna said with stars twinkling in her eyes.
The couple broke up after hearing the comments and blushed with embarrassment.
"That, that was inappropriate, Lisy!" Ryker snarled.
"I don't see why," she snapped. "Hey Ryker, why don't you go show your skills now?"
Mira looked at him and smiled. "It's true, you haven't gone yet."
"I don't like being the center of attention," he complained.
"But we all have to go, that's being a man," Elfman countered.
"Shit!" Ryker swore and reluctantly headed for the platform.
Ryker climbed into the arena and looked seriously at everyone, he had an expression of few friends. He really didn't want to do that, showing up was a hassle for him, but if everyone had to show up he couldn't do anything, he'd have to swallow it and do it anyway.
Everyone looked at him expectantly. What would he demonstrate? What magic would he use? Ryker turned forward, turning his back on the crowd, and took aim at the field burned by Natsu ahead.
Ryker performed a sequence of hand seals, just as he finished a large blue magic circle appeared in the sky, over the devastated field. Everyone else was waiting, most didn't see his magic and what he was capable of, so they wanted to find out more.
He stretched out his right arm with two fingers raised, making the magic circle glow brightly. In a downward movement he lowered his fist and with that a shower of blue spheres began to fall onto the field, exploding on contact with the ground.
After a minute of bombing and an even more devastated field, the magic circle fell apart, bringing calm to the place. Ryker turned and started down the platform.
"That was impressive, I have to admit," Valentin told him as Ryker walked past him. "I've never seen hand movements like what you did. What were they?" he asked.
"They were hand seals. For some spells they are needed," Ryker replied dryly and went to join his companions.
"'Hand stamps', huh...", Valentin smiled darkly.
In the surveillance room, Albert stared at the images on the monitors, staring at what they were showing.
"That's it! That's all I need… hihihehehe !", he laughed sadistically and hysterically. "Now…I want you," he said looking at Ryker's image.
After everyone introduced themselves, they returned inside the mansion talking and discussing with each other about all of each other's spells and strengths, noting how they've grown since Alvarez.
"My friends!", Valentin caught everyone's attention. "What a spectacle you provided. I am deeply grateful," he bowed in reverence to the mages of Fairy Tail.
"We are happy to be able to participate. You have been very kind and pleasant to welcome us to your residence. It's the least we can do," Makarov said with a genuine smile.
"No master. I have to thank them for what they did for us in the war against Alvarez", Valentin thanked him. "Seeing what you are capable of, I now understand how you defeated their army and defeated Acnologia. Thank you so much," he bowed again in respect and thanks.
"No, it was nothing. We just did our duty," Makarov said awkwardly.
Valentin returned to his straight, imposing posture. "But in return, tomorrow we will hold a ball in honor of the Fairy Tail guild. Many important people will come and it will be an honor to have you with us", he warned. "Don't worry about clothes, our best seamstresses and our best tailors are hard at work. It will be all up to me and your taste, believe me," he smiled sweetly.
"A dance?", they asked themselves and the whispers took over the group.
"Yes, but worry about it tomorrow. Today, enjoy your stay and eat whatever you want", Valentin said.
Mirajane and Ryker were lying on the bed in their room. She had her head resting on his shoulder as he hugged her and she rested her arm on his chest, stroking it lightly with her fingers.
"What's bothering you?", she asked looking at him and seeing the serious and frowning expression he had.
He rolled his eyes at her and smiled, seeing her perfectly contoured face. "It's nothing, don't worry. I'm just thinking."
"Still think there's something wrong going on around here?" she asked, knowing him all too well.
Ryker gave a light laugh. "I can't seem to keep anything from you anymore," he looked at her again. "This Valentin and his butler bothers me."
"He looked really nice and his smile looked genuine," Mira countered. "It's not just jealousy", she said looking at him slyly.
"Smart girl!" he looked at her with disdain. "Smiles are easy to make, a psychopath can forge feelings very well," Ryker explained. "But I don't know if that's the case, or just in my head," he sighed.
Mira pulled out of his embrace and lay on top of him and looked him in the eyes deeply. They exchanged glances for a few seconds, before she kissed him deeply for a long time.
Their lips parted as they had to breathe again. "If you're suspicious, so am I. I believe you," she said. "We'll keep an eye on them tomorrow and make sure nothing happens to our friends," she said determinedly.
He looked at her smiling, he knew that woman was perfect and had full notions of the potential she had. And there was so much he wanted to know about her still.
"So… transformation magic, too. Is there anything Mirajane Strauss doesn't know how to do?" he asked proudly of her.
Mira sat on top of him with a thoughtful expression. " Huh !? I don't think so," she said cutely.
Ryker, in one swift movement, lifted his torso and captured Mira's lips on his. She wrapped her legs around his waist and they kissed hotly, their tongues dancing with each other. Ryker slipped his left hand down Mira's back, lifting her nightgown to gain access to her ass. He squeezed her and began to massage her as they kissed.
He could feel the hairs on her skin prickling more and more at his touch. Ryker stopped the kiss on her lips and began to migrate up her neck, past Mira's ear, drawing soft moans from her.
"Ah ! Ryker… no… we can't," she said, basking in her boyfriend's kisses.
Ignoring her comment, Ryker continued his attack on her sensitive spots, eliciting more and more moans. He turned her around and laid her on the bed, spreading her legs and settling between them. Lying on top of Mira, he kissed her again, following his path to her neck, while his left hand landed on her right breast.
"Ahh … ahh … ahhh !" she moaned under him, which spurred him on even more. "Ryker stop!" she pleaded. " Ah ! Please stop!" she begged. "They... ahhh ! They... go... ahh ! They'll hear…" was when he stopped what he was doing with Mira.
He stopped and thought before looking down to see her flushed and kiss marks on her lips and neck. "Shit!" he said and got off her, lying down beside her.
Mira took a few deep breaths, catching her breath a little, and turned to him, snuggled against him and kissed him lightly on the mouth. "Excuse me. It was embarrassing enough to be heard once," she gave a shy little smile.
Ryker smiled at her. "Do not worry about that. We'll have a lot of time ahead of us," he kissed her forehead affectionately. "It's my fault actually. I'm so good at what I do that you can't control yourself," he chuckled slyly.
Mirajane slapped him on the chest and looked at him with a false disapproval expression. "Convinced…" she giggled.
"When we get back to Magnolia we'll catch up, at my apartment," he said slyly.
"You pervert!", she said in amazement and slapping him playfully, again.
He pulled her over him and kissed her. "And you love it," he whispered in her ear. "Or do you want me to remind you that whenever we do, that punk girl comes out to you," he nibbled on Mira's ear. "And I must say she is wild...".
Mira blushed and covered her face with her hands in embarrassment. Ryker laughed and tried to get her hands off her face. She tried to dodge, not wanting to show the blush on her face, the fight continued making them both laugh.
They exchanged more kisses before falling asleep snuggled together.