As always I do not own anything but my oc. I hope you enjoy this.

Chapter 3 Stand My Ground by Within Temptation

Why did she even bother to agree with this in the beginning? Was she blinded by all the anger she had in her petite body that it caused her to think irrationally? Or was she just that plain stupid she didn't bother to think about anything that could happen down the road?

No she didn't at all and it was eating at her now. If she could she would have backed out of this deal. If there was someway for her to find a way to create a clause then she would. But, she knew how Laxus could be. He wasn't dumb like Natsu can be so he probably thought about every little detail that went along with this.

She just knew she was regretting the decision more and more as the days went on. Especially today for some reason.

"Laxus Dreyar what do you think you're doing?! Get out of my room! I told you repeatedly that you are to sleep on the couch until I get a futon for you to sleep on." Emi squeaked as she pointed toward the hall as she stood in the doorway. It was a vain attempt since she felt like she was talking to a wall most of the time with how he ignored her.

A gray eye cracked open to look at her before rolling to show how much he cared for her opinion. It wasn't his fault that he claimed her bed as his own last night. He just knew that if anyone caught him lounging on top of lavender covers he would have to shock them until they passed out. No one needed to see this.

It wasn't even a color he thought looked good for bed covers. He preferred darker colors especially blues and reds. He was convinced that she had no color taste whatsoever.

"It wasn't my fault on this one Red. I didn't fall asleep on the couch last night watching some damn chick flick that you've probably watched a thousand times." Laxus argued as his eyes narrowed with the thought coming back to him.

After training with Bixlow he was ready for bed. Even the thought of getting a shower could wait. That was until he walked into the living room and found her sprawled out on top of the couch with a pillow nestled in her arms. The menu to a movie that he's heard Mira and Lisanna go on about before was playing on the television which made his skin crawl.

His gaze turned to the young woman that had her cheeks almost puffed out with air in some hope to make her look tougher. Obviously some things haven't changed since she was a kid though he could barely remember it.

He also knew that for someone that worked from sun up to sundown she cleaned up nicely. She did nothing but worked on the farm if not delivering produce that she grew. But, right now she looked almost different from that woman.

She wasn't wearing a pair of jeans that hung loosely on her or smeared with dirt and blood. Her top was decorative and brought out her hair color but it wasn't something that he hadn't noticed before. Even her shoulder length hair was tame looking with barely any stray strands standing out.

Her eyes narrowed as they danced around the room for something to hit him with. He wasn't the same Laxus that she remembered growing up. He wasn't sweet or carefree so apparently the hunger for power did change him like she feared. It made her wish that she could go back in time to keep that Laxus that she enjoyed being around longer.

"You know you could have nudged me or something. Hell you could have yelled at me for all I care."

"I did actually. You just kept on sleeping so it was nothing but a pointless battle." Laxus grumbled as he let his stare wonder to the white ceiling overhead. He hated the color white because of all the memories that it brought back to him. He could almost smell the sterile environment he was forced into when his father implanted the lacrima into him. Ever since then he couldn't stand the color white.

A growl escaped her though it sounded different from the one a week ago he noted. It didn't sound like a feral animal but of a person showing disgust. So she was still capable of sounding human even if he caught her making cat and pig noises at some of the farm animals.

How the hell did he become one of Fiore's most eligible bachelors at one time? It eluded her and she didn't want to caught a headache. How could anyone stand to be around him also irked her. What does Mira see in him anyway? He was nothing but a pig to her.

Even as she stormed out of the house and into her yard in her bare feet she just knew one thing. She had to get as far away as she could from him. It didn't seem to help. He haunted her thoughts in his cocky, rude way. She hated him even more with the fact that he acted like a spoiled child most of the time.

As the thoughts consumed her more her grass green eyes narrowed as she walked along a flag stone path that led to a place she felt like was paradise but also a memorial. Every time things became too much for her to handle she would come to this sanctuary that she maintained over the years.

It was a simple garden that was meant to attract pollinators so the crops would grow but also to bring color to the place that seemed dull anymore. The size had grown over the years compared to when her mother started growing it. Her green thumb wasn't as good as her mother's but she somehow managed to keep the flowers she's planted alive. She even went through and added a magnolia tree in the center for shade but also because the shade of pink it had was her mother's favorite. The tree was a surprise to her father for what was supposed to have been her parent's anniversary.

Sitting down with a flop at the base of the tree Emi leaned against the trunk. Oh how she wished desperately that her parents were around to give her advise. Though Laxus certainly wouldn't be staying there.

"Hey Mama, Papa." She whispered as she felt her eyes start to sting from the prickle of tears. It always happened when she sat there and tried to get some idea of what her parents would say. It just showed how much she missed her parents.

Of course nothing as an answer came to her as she looked around the farm that she called home. She couldn't help it though.

"What do you think I should do now? It's been a week and all he does is train and lay around. If he isn't doing that then the Thunder Legion grabs him only to dump him back into my lap drunk or after a random fuck." She muttered to herself but she felt herself seething over all of it. She felt like a babysitter more than anything.

Looking back now she swore he was the worse kind of person to have to deal with. He didn't seem like he had his life together and only wanted nothing but power. Anyone else would be better than tall, blond, and grumpy to deal with.

Leaning back she stared at what she could of the blue sky that hung overhead. It wasn't hot exactly thanks to a light breeze but it could still be considered miserable. Her choice of clothes weren't smart either but she just wanted comfort today. But, it was better than being stuck inside a house with all that testosterone that he had rolling off him. So in a small way it was a blessing in disguise.

A quick glance from the corner of her eye drew her out of her musing. Emi took in more of her childhood home. She had a lot to do still with barely enough time in the day to do any of her projects. The fences needed repairing if not replaced so she wouldn't have to wake up for a bi-nightly animal escape. It also meant that she would have to reach out to Freed to replace the barriers he's placed years ago to keep out the vulcans and other nuisances that make her regret taking over the business. That wasn't including anything that could pop up along the way.

Her head fell at the thought of the never-ending to-do list. It just seemed to get worse when she became the sole person tending to this place.

"Red!"

A wince crossed her face as her eyes narrowed in irritation. Even when she wanted alone time, he found a way to ruin in. It also didn't help that she despised that nickname that Laxus came up for her out of the blue. In the beginning she tried to ignore it but it was getting more and more irritating to her.

They kept getting into arguments here and there which has become something normal for her. Now she was waiting for a physical fight to happen since it was something she saw happening in the future. If that was case, then she knew he was going to win hands down.

"Red!" Laxus called out once more but it sounded distant, so he had to be standing on the front porch.

Without any thought she picked herself up from where she sat and walked off the property into the forest that butted up against it. After today and all the other stressful moments she didn't want to be anywhere around him. It also didn't help with the fact that he practically made himself at home on the first day. Nor did it help that she kept comparing the Laxus that she's dealing with to the one she grew up around as a child.

Grabbing hold of a branch she felt another wince cross her face as a dull pounding sensation radiated from her head. She knew deep down that recalling the past as much as she had been wasn't good for her. Every time she wished for things to be like they used to be she knew that she would regret it like she was now.

"No." Emi whimpered as she laid her head against the branch in some attempt to rid herself of the pain that was all too familiar. "I can't let my magic out. Anything but that. Please."

The very thought of releasing it scared her. She didn't want her own memories or hidden desires to be out in the open for everyone to see. It was bad enough that she had to torture herself daily with them if not nightly. They had to stay locked up in the box that they put them in so she could continue to live a slightly normal life. It was bad enough that she had enough regret with her life to make anyone think she had some kind of mental problem or something along those lines.

"I hate this." She muttered as she glanced up toward the tree canopy. From the direction the shadows were angled towards and bits of sunshine she could see something told her that it was going to get dark soon or storm. Either one she didn't need to be out in.

She knew she had to get back even if it meant dealing with Laxus and whatever he wanted. Though the thought of being out at night sounded more pleasing than that. Or maybe if she was lucky enough that the Thunder Legion would swing by again and take him away. If that was the case, then they could bring him back after she fell asleep so she wouldn't have to deal with him.

But she knew she could never get that lucky. If she was then she would still have her father around instead of lying to everyone.