The past week had been a flutter of activity for the Strauss family. Lisanna slowly worked on regaining her strength, and had also received many rambunctious visitors. "I think everyone in Fairy Tail has come to visit," Mira said happily one day to her siblings, sorting through a pile of cards with well-wishes. Elfman nodded, packing up the copious amounts of stuffed animals Lisanna had been gifted to take home.
"Well, everyone but Laxus, but he wouldn't come anyway," Lisanna said matter of factly, not at all perturbed by it. She still understood the guild as it had been two years ago, and while not too much had changed, her siblings were still working on keeping her updated.
"Well, actually, Laxus doesn't come around the guild that often," Mira explained. "As I understand it, he does more and more work for his father."
"Of course he would," Elfman grumbled, never having liked the man. "Selfish bastard. Only looking out for himself."
"So King Ivan is still around, huh? I guess it would've been nice to wake up to him being taken down," Lisanna said with a sigh, looking out her window. "I always hoped the people would rise up and ask Master to take over again."
"Sometimes people try, but Ivan has an elite squad of mages designed to put those rebellions down," Elfman replied forlornly. "People get sent to prison for even speaking out against him."
"I don't get it, why don't all the guilds band together and take the country back?" Lisanna asked, starting to get upset. "Why has everyone become so passive?! Especially Fairy Tail! Laxus is a jerk but even he must- "
"That's enough, Lisanna!" Mirajane hissed, as she looked around nervously for a moment, before getting up to shut the door. "Listen, people have had that idea before, but all it brought was trouble. A guild by the name of Cait Shelter was totally wiped out, and there was only one survivor, a little girl named Wendy. We found her and took her in, but we still don't know what they even did to warrant the attack." She sat again, occasionally flicking her eyes to door, keeping her voice quiet. "I know its upsetting, but you mustn't speak of it again. Its gotten worse since you've been sleeping and I don't want to bear losing you another time."
"But Mira-"
"No, Lisanna. People disappear everyday. Master doesn't want anyone to get themselves imprisoned or killed. He says we'll know when the time is right, and he says it just isn't right yet. So until that day, not another word, ok?" Mira continued, her voice even softer, but flecked with a dangerous tone Lisanna remembered all too well. The younger Strauss lowered her head.
"Ok."
"Wonderful, and now that that's settled, it's high time I left for work. I'll see you tomorrow when you get to go home, and Elfman, I'll see you tonight," she said, collecting her bag, and giving them each a hug. "Goodbye then, I love you."
Giving one more smile, she left the hospital and headed to her shift at the guild, where she'd tend to the bar until closing time. It was as rambunctious as always when she arrived, and everyone greeted her happily. Kinana smiled brightly as she approached, and the Master waved his drink in a jolly fashion.
"Mirajane, my dear, how are you today?" Makarov Dreyar, former King of Fiore, asked her excitedly. He loved the girl dearly, as she was essentially his lieutenant.
"I'm great, Master. I just came from seeing Lisanna," she said as she examined all the filed missions for the day. "She gets to go home tomorrow, so you might get to see her here again."
"Everyone would be thrilled I'm sure," the man replied good-naturedly. "Though I do worry they might mob her from all sides."
"Perhaps, but she'll love them for it. She's excited to meet all of our new members as well," Mira explained, counting the money in the cash register. It was her diligence in areas such as this that helped Makarov immeasurably.
"She'll charm them as quickly as ever, I'm sure," he said, hopping off of the bar, leaving her to her work.
The day passed quite normally, as Mirajane filed missions for the many mages who worked at the Fairy Tail guild, and served drinks to those more content to sit about. The usual scuffles ensued, especially between Natsu and Gray, or Natsu and Gajeel, or basically Natsu and anybody. Erza put a stop to it the best she could, but that evolved into a full-fledged brawl until Makarov finally intervened. She doled out love-advice to an enamored Juvia, teased Lucy, and cut off Cana when she was near the impressive limit of her sobriety. Tables were wiped, floors were swept and mopped, and the bar was stocked for another day.
Mirajane essentially kept the place running, and everyone knew it.
Makarov had long since left, when she finally locked up and turned to leave. Something felt off, but she brushed it off as an unusual chill, cautiously starting to walk home. After two steps, however, she found herself hitting a wall of translucent purple runes. "No, no, no," she whispered frantically, as she tried to beat on the small trap. She knew in the back of her mind it was useless, she was stuck for good. This was the work of Freed Justine, a former mage of Fairy Tail, who now worked for Prince Laxus.
She beat off waves of panic, and tried to call on the magic power that slept dormant within her in preparation for some inevitable fight, though it seemed impossible. Mira had no idea if it was the runes or her weakness preventing her from calling on the demon souls she had in her body, and she didn't quite know why she was stuck like this either. All she knew was that she would fight as hard as she could. There was no way she was willing to be separated from her siblings. They needed her to look after them.
"Mirajane Strauss," came the voice of a woman, and Mira whipped around to the source, a deadly look in her eye, as she tried yet again to summon her Satan Soul. But it was too late, as even though she felt a stirring of power within her, she came face to face with Evergreen, another of Laxus' bodyguards, and became a stone statue.
Laxus felt a tap on his shoulder, and looked up to see Bixlow smiling over him, the babies whirling around excitedly. "You got her?" he asked, taking out an earphone.
"Yeah, boss. Plan went off without a hitch, although, her magic started to build up again, Ever said. You might wanna be careful in there, eh?" Bixlow said, joking around, ready to lead the way.
"She's in magic cuffs, Bixlow," Laxus said as he got up and started walking the path to the holding cell she was being kept in. "And even if she's formidable, she ain't as good as me."
"Yeah, you're right, I just thought it was funny how nervous Evergreen got. If it weren't for her eyes and Freed's runes, the barmaid would probably pound her into the dirt," the man in armor chuckled, following after Laxus. "She was a scary one."
"Probably," he grunted as they reached their destination. Evergreen pouted in front of a locked door, but moved quickly from his path. "Stand watch, don't let any of my father's cronies interfere."
"You got it, boss."
Laxus walked into the small room, finding Freed perched against a wall, watching Mirajane like a hawk. The woman in question sat at a table, hands in magic cuffs, and a petulant expression on her face. He gestured for Freed to leave the room, and sat opposite to the woman, leaning back lazily in his chair. "It's been a while," he finally said, examining her.
"Why am I here, Laxus?" she bit out, cutting right to the chase. She met his eyes, and looked as if she were trying to burn holes through his face.
"Is that any way to speak to a prince?" he asked with a smirk, relishing in how angry she was. She was always the most interesting that way.
"Is this any way to treat a defenseless woman?" she snarled. His smirk fell, and he became all business.
"You're Gramps' right hand. You probably know everything about everything about that dump, maybe even more than him," he observed, meeting her gaze evenly. "Tell me about Lumen Histoire."
"Lumen Histoire?" Mirajane asked, repeating the words as if they felt funny on her tongue. "I don't know what that even is."
"Surely you must know something, some deep, dark guild secret," he prodded, wondering if this whole operation was even worth it. "That building gets destroyed all the time, and according to the King, Gramps took something from this castle and keeps it in that building."
"I honestly don't know anything about that, Laxus. Master never speaks of his time on the throne or this castle. If there is something hidden in the guild, Master has never spoken of it, and certainly not to me," she replied irritably, as if her time was being wasted. His fist tightened under the table, and he refused to show her his frustration.
"There's absolutely no special knowledge you possess? Don't kid yourself, Mirajane, he trusts you more than anyone," he bit out, a little more bitter than he meant to be.
"No! There isn't! And I would like very much to go home now," Mira demanded, looking at her hands.
"How do I know you aren't hiding something? Lying to your prince is a crime," he reminded, almost desperate.
"Laxus, I'm not lying to you. I know nothing. I'm honestly wasting your time, and you're wasting mine," she chided, trying to remain above it all, but betraying her own desperation.
"Mira," he spoke, summoning her eyes to his own. They were wet, even though it was clear she refused to cry. "What's wrong?" It was the most gentle he'd been the whole night.
"Lisanna woke up," she whispered, his eyes widening by a fraction. Before he could respond, his father entered the room quite suddenly, a grim smirk on his face.
"Laxus, why are you making this poor girl cry?" Ivan asked, sounding more amused than concerned. "Was he mean to you, dear?"
Mira refused to look Ivan in the eye, and Laxus frowned deeply. He had hoped his father wouldn't catch wind of her being here, so he could interrogate her in peace.
"Tell me, girl, what do you know about the Lumen Histoire?" Ivan asked her, a sinister tone in his voice. She looked to Laxus, but Ivan grabbed her face to meet his eyes. "I don't know why you looked to him. He's not going to help you. What's your name girl? And don't lie. I'll know if you're lying."
"Mirajane Strauss," she bit out, trying to look away, but getting her face tugged again.
"Mirajane Strauss, what do you know about the Lumen Histoire?" he asked again, tightening his grip on her chin. Laxus watched her as she looked him right in the eye. She still had balls of steel.
"Nothing. I've never heard of it, I've never seen it, and I don't know where it's hidden. I'm just a barmaid, I can't even use magic," she said, trying to plead her case with her eyes.
Ivan chuckled darkly. "We both know that's a lie. You're quite powerful, I can sense it. And such a great body too. But sadly for you, the truth lacrima in my pocket says you aren't lying. Which means you need to be put down, since we can't have you running to the old man and squealing like a pig."
After hearing Mira's sharp intake of breath, Laxus felt himself panic. He didn't even know why, which made him angry to boot. "Wait," he said, managing to plaster a wicked grin onto his face. Ivan looked to him, an eyebrow raised, waiting for him to continue.
"I wanna keep her as my mistress," Laxus said. Mirajane gawked at him, a horrified expression on her face. Ivan frowned as well, feeling for his truth lacrima.
"Why would I allow that, Laxus?"
Laxus shrugged, attempting to convince him. He didn't know why he was trying this hard for someone from Fairy Tail. He had gotten her into this mess, however, so he at least owed her that much. "She looks like a good fuck. Always thought about it whenever I was at that dumb place. I have the opportunity now." He crossed his arms and leaned the chair back in an attempt to look casual. "Besides, the whores around here are old news."
Ivan dragged his gaze over her form, making her feel violated. He must have agreed, as he turned to his son, smirking with dark amusement. "The minute she becomes an issue, she dies. Is that clear?"
"Crystal," Laxus replied, standing with his hands in his pockets as his father left the room.
"You monster!" Mira shrieked once the King was gone. "How could you be so cruel!"
Laxus turned to her, amused. "I just saved your life. I had to come up with a convincing reason to fool his damn truth lacrima. Now you can live in a cushy castle, and if you play your cards right, you can see your sister again." He neglected to mention to absolute ghastly nature of Ivan's court, and the other, annoying mistresses the noblemen kept that she would have to deal with. Especially Ivan's, his mistresses were the worst of all.
"I don't want to be your slave," Mira said, upset with the turn of events. Her eyes began to well up again.
"Relax, you don't have to do anything," he said, gesturing for her to get up, already regretting this decision. "Unless you wanna."
She glared at him for a moment, before relenting. "Thank you. I hate to admit it, but you did save my life."
He sighed, opening the door. "I'll take you to my tower."
A/N: Sorry for the wait, but here I am! I hope you like it! I had trouble writing it, but I was like "come onnn, it's only chapter two!" Thanks everyone who read, reviewed and followed. I hope you continue to enjoy !