Happy Friday! Today, I bring you another kid Miraxus flashback.
loney: Thanks for the review! I always love hearing from you guys; it keeps things fun for me. I hope you enjoy this chapter. The ending is one of my favorites. :)
- K. Chandler
"Mira!" cried Lisanna, waving a flyer at her.
"Taking another job, sis?" asked Mira.
"This isn't a job flyer, silly!" said Lisanna, unable to contain her excitement. "It's a poster for the County Fair. It's the next two weekends over in Oak Town."
"County Fair, huh?" asked Mira. Her lips gave a downward twitch.
Lisanna nodded, her blue eyes twinkling. "Big brother Elf is hanging out with Ever and the rest of the Thunder Legion. They wanted to know if we wanted to come too."
"You can go, if you want," said Mira, shrugging. She smoothed her skirt, keeping her fingers from tightening around the fabric.
"Don't you want to come with?" Lisanna frowned.
"I… think I have to work," said Mira, shrugging. It was a lie, a really obvious one. But Mira couldn't be bothered to come up with something better. "Sorry, I wish I could go!" she added apologetically.
"What's the matter?" asked Lisanna. "Why don't you want to come?"
"It's… kind of complicated," said Mira.
She remembered a time when things hadn't been so complicated.
It had been one of those lazy summer days that called for short shorts. It had rained earlier in the day, and the humidity made her hair cling to her face. The sudden storm had left the sky cloudy, so after the sun had set, it looked like it was made of dusky velvet.
The twinkle of lights from booths and rides illuminated the midway. Mira took in the smell of damp dirt, deep fryers and pure happiness. She loved summer, because with it brought long days, clear nights and, of course, the County Fair.
Mira hugged Mr. Ribbits to her chest. Mr. Ribbits was what she was calling the stuffed frog that she and Laxus had won at one of the booths by knocking over milk bottles. He was adorable with too-long arms and legs that velcroed into a loop.
The whole thing had started off as a competition, one that Mira could have easily won. They didn't call her the She-Devil for nothing, after all. But she had to admit that Laxus had a decent arm too. After a few rounds, he had managed to keep pace with her. She was starting to get bored and was about ready to call it a draw. But Laxus paid the kid running the booth for one more round. Then he'd pooled his points with Mira so she'd be able to get a decent prize, and she'd chosen Mr. Ribbits.
Mira smiled to herself. Frogs were adorable.
And so was Laxus. He was wandering towards her with a stick of pale blue cotton candy clutched in his hand. It was a strange choice for such a serious guy.
"Where's mine?" asked Mira.
"This is yours," he muttered, eying the whimsical sweet uncomfortably.
"Ooh. Yay!" said Mira. She fastened Mr. Ribbits around her neck to free up her hands. Mira reached over to pull a bundle of spun sugar from the paper cone. It was delicate and sugary, dissolving to nothingness on her tongue. "Cotton candy is the absolute best!"
"I thought you said funnel cake was the best," said Laxus, sounding bored. He tried to pass the sweet treat to her.
Mira ignored him, snatching another wad from the cottony mass. "Funnel cake isn't bad," said Mira, popping the fluffy candy into her mouth. "But all that greasy, fried fair food is just hype. I mean fried butter? Give me a break! Although fried Oreos aren't bad."
"Do you wanna hold this yourself?" asked Laxus, pushing the paper cone at her.
"You're doing just fine," said Mira with a sassy flip of her ponytail.
Laxus huffed. "You're such a kid," he complained.
Mira grinned cheekily before sticking her tongue out at him.
Laxus just rolled his eyes. He helped himself to a bit of cotton candy.
"What do you think? Should we hit up the midway and play some more games? Or do you want to go on the hay ride?" she asked. "I think they've got a fortune teller here too."
"If I wanted some mystical mumbo jumbo, I would have just asked Cana," said Laxus.
"Yeah, but her predictions are actually half-accurate. This is way more fun," said Mira.
"Wanna hit the photobooth?" he asked. "I think I saw one back that way."
"Sure, why not?" said Mira.
The photobooth wasn't far and there was no line. Mira and Laxus stepped inside, taking their places on the bench. Mira set Mr. Ribbits on the bench where he'd be out of the shot and Laxus started up the machine.
Mira smiled as the screen counted down to the shutter.
Click.
Then she frowned at Laxus. "You call that a smile?" she demanded, poking him in the cheek.
Click.
"Hey!" Laxus' expression twisted with annoyance, shoving her off him. "Would you cut that out?"
Click.
Mira stuck out her tongue. "I'll do what I want," she retorted.
"Oh, you asked for it," said Laxus. A grin spread across his face as he pulled her towards him with a burly arm around her shoulders.
Click.
"Lax!" giggled Mira. Not to be outdone, Mira shoved him with her shoulder, leaning against his sturdy frame. He'd gotten so much bigger lately. Stronger.
Click.
With a smirk, Laxus pushed back, keeping her tucked firmly against his side.
Mira craned her neck to touch her cheek to his.
Click.
Then she turned suddenly and blew in his ear.
Laxus jumped, making Mira cackle loudly.
Click.
Click.
Click.
When the photo sequence ended, Mira scrolled through the pictures that had been taken, laughing over each one.
"Your grumpy face is perfect here," crooned Mira.
"I do not have a grumpy face," said Laxus.
"What do you call this?" asked Mira.
"That's my expression when you're intent on torturing me," said Laxus.
"Sure. My presence is absolute torture," grinned Mira. "I can tell how much you hate it here," she said, selecting a shot of a pleased-looking Laxus with Mira curled in his lap. "Ooh, I absolutely need this one!" she squealed, adding it to one of her photo strips, next to the one of Laxus cringing when she put Mr. Ribbits on his head.
Laxus crossed his arms, turning away. Mira could have sworn his cheeks were dusted pink. "Whatever. Are you done yet?"
"Just about. Which ones do you want?" asked Mira.
"Hm?" Laxus turned back towards the screen. He reviewed the photos with a disinterested glance, ignoring Mira's taunts about how silly he looked in one shot or another.
"Just this one," said Laxus, finally. He punched to order it as a regular sized photo.
Mira was surprised. She never took Laxus for the sentimental type. He had picked out a simple shot where she'd looped her arms around his neck. They were both looking at the camera, a confident expression on his face and a mischievous twinkle in her eyes. It was actually pretty sweet.
Mira wondered if she had put that one in one of her prints. She couldn't remember. Oh, well. Even if she hadn't selected that exact one, she had plenty of other awesome photos.
The machine whirred as it spat the glossy strips out of the photo slot. She waited eagerly for the photos to print, picking them up when they were finished. Then she fastened Mr. Ribbits around her neck again so the could go and enjoy the rest of the fair.
Things had been so simple then. Back when her favorite colors were purple and black and he still jammed to classic rock. Back when she didn't worry about what she said or did and he was more a frog than a prince. (What was a frog but an awkward dragon, after all?)
Back when they were just two kids enjoying their summer. Two kids in love.
Maybe that's just what summer love was like. Cotton candy and afternoon thundershowers. Sweet, sudden, and then suddenly gone.
Young Miraxus is so cute! Somebody artistic needs to draw something fluffy from this chapter to share with the rest of the group - I'm thinking either something from the photobooth (like Laxus with Mr. Ribbits on his head), or Mira and Laxus sharing cotton candy.
Next time, in [Mazeverse] Can't Catch Lightning, when tragedy strikes the guild, a wedge is driven between our lovebirds: "It isn't your fault," Erza was saying. "It was an accident."
Stop back next Friday for the next installment, or just follow me, Karine of R011ingThunder.