Episode 015: Image of the Restored
"All that work and trouble that I went through… and this is all I get?" The vial Ragna had just been given was the size of his pinkie finger. It was capped at the top to contain the thick red liquid inside, very little red liquid for what the concoction was about to do.
"I spent all night refining the materials and concentrating the parts that I needed for your mixture. I stayed up so long that I have bags under my eyes." Ragna decided not to comment that he honestly couldn't tell with Porlyusica's wrinkled face. "You should be grateful that I took all of that time to have it ready first thing this morning!"
"You were the one that told me to show up early the next morning and to not be late, never said this couldn't wait until the afternoon," Ragna sighed at the older woman's attitude. "Though I was… honestly expecting some kind of twist. Like you already had the potion this entire time and I was just getting you those ingredients for a killer feast or some shit."
"…Is that what humans would do? It sounds like a joke in poor taste." To be fair, it was. "So, now for ingesting the potion. You're going to want to take it in one gulp, but you'll have to be ready. The amount of pain is excruciating and will doubtlessly render you unconscious for the rest of the day at least. After that you'll have to go through the process of rehabilitating yourself with your new eye and arm. Best to take it slow and not have jobs to worry about for a few days."
"So that's it? Just drink it?" Ragna asked. While he got a sharp glare for ignoring her words, he didn't receive any denial. "Huh, bottoms up I guess."
"What did I just tell you about preparation! I'm not taking care of you here when you go unconscious!" Despite Porlyusica's heated mouth, Ragna popped off the vial's top (wincing at the smell of the potion) before downing it in one swig (tasted twice as bad as it smelled). "I may not care a thing for humans, but that doesn't mean I want to watch you go into pain!"
At first nothing seemed off aside from the horrid aftertaste of the potion. Then all at once his eye and arm flared up in a pain so bad that Ragna gritted his teeth. His foulmouthed caretaker even showed some signs of concern as his pain truly set in… but Ragna didn't go unconscious. Don't get him wrong, it was every bit as painful as when he first lost his arm and had been replaced with the BlazBlue… but he also felt very familiar with it. And since then, he'd grown. What was only a few minutes felt like an eternity, but eventually the pain subsided.
"You're still awake?" She didn't sound concerned for him, merely thoughtful at the development. "Either the potion didn't truly take effect and all you received was a fraction of the pain, or… you actually endured all of that."
"…Guess I should check." After being in this state for so long, Ragna had to focus to use his right arm. When he made the effort though, it moved with ease though it didn't feel like he was fully coordinated with it just yet. Not a problem, that would come back quickly enough. Forcing his right eye open and seeing in a mirror that it was indeed still red, Ragna closed his left and found that his vision had indeed returned like he'd never lost it. "Answer your questions?"
"I suppose it does, but now that you're finally fully healed you can leave for good and never return." Kicked out almost immediately, but Ragna was surprised she hadn't just handed him the potion and told him to piss off.
"Come on, I've got to do something to help you out," he insisted, feeling pretty giving now that he'd been restored. "What are you in the mood for?"
"Peace and quiet! So leave me be!" After shouting, she turned her back and appeared to be rather busy with a collection of beakers… though Ragna had the slightest feeling that she was just trying to appear busy so he'd get out of her hair.
"Right, I get the hint… seriously, thanks for your help though." She gave him the kindest response possible towards a human… she ignored him. Shrugging Ragna headed off out of the door. "Guess I'll have to see what everyone at the guild is going to think of the new me." He smirked sharply. "Can't wait."
Now that Ragna was finally out of her hair, Porlyusica eventually noticed the scent something nearby. There on the table where Ragna's potion had been lay a fresh cobbler resting in its tin, looking like it had just come out of the oven. Knowing her patient's ability with Requip magic, it was easy to assume that the Reaper had kept the treat in storage to keep it warm. She considered throwing it out to keep her pride… but it did admittedly smell good. It would be needlessly wasteful just to discard it outright, so she took the accompanying fork and gave it a taste. The flavors were exactly what she expected…
And that was the problem.
"He stole some of my apples when he was here last night to make this," she growled. "…Ever the human that one."
She still finished it, cursing out Ragna's humanity between every bite.
Later -Outside of the Fairy Tail Guild-
"Everything ready for Ragna's big surprise?" Makarov asked Erza Scarlet. The S-Rank mage gave her guild master a confident nod, no doubt she'd ensured that everything would be prepared through her usual efficient (if draconian) methods. "Good, he'll be in for quite the surprise when he returns."
"It doesn't hurt that we've also managed to sell out every seat available on such short notice; most of the town seemed excited for the competition." To the outsider looking in the wasn't much to gleamed from the setup. The was a large stage perfectly set for the countless chairs that occupied the street. One side of the stage held three small and simple desks while the other side held two much larger tables covered in cloth. "If anything, we've already made a large profit outside of the heavy betting. Now we have to hope that the man himself doesn't abandon the event."
"Compared to the chaos that his team causes him, this will be a refreshing change of pace," the guild leader chuckled. "Still, he left for Porlyusica's first thing this morning. I don't know what's taking him so long to return. We only have an hour before the main event starts, so we're cutting it close."
"I'm sure that we'd be able to entertain the crowd thoroughly enough with pre-show entertainment if he's truly that late. Or we could send his team out to grab him? Though if he headed off to try a job now that he has his arm back, tracking him down could be-"
"Oi, don't worry about it. You made it clear you had some kind of party plans last night so I'm already here." Erza and Makarov stared blankly at Ragna who'd just arrived. Now his arm was finally back in his place through its sleeve proper (goodbye Auron look), he carried himself much more steadily, and his depth perception was back. "Sorry I took so long getting back, I tried to get some practice in on the way just trying to get the right feeling back into this damn arm of mine. Got it back pretty quick at least, since I've been through this shit already."
Silence.
"Uh… guys? Isn't this where you overreact with how young I look?"
"Alright, enough jokes," Makarov sighed. "Who are you and where's Ragna?"
"Tch, good one old man. If that's the most original thing you could come up with…" Ragna then remembered the kind of people he was dealing with. "Oh god, you're serious."
"Identity fraud is no laughing matter," Erza scolded with a scowl that usually sent people into a deep panic… Ragna merely grimaced at how dense these two were.
"Guys… it's me? Don't you recognize…?" No answer or change in their complexions. "So if you don't think it's me then-"
"What's going on? Is he back yet?" Natsu asked as he came out the front doors of the guild. Taking one look at Ragna, Natsu gave the air a quick sniff. Ragna at least appreciated that Natsu was confirming his suspicions, even if it should have been obvious. "Wow, you must've really gone the extra mile by making sure you smell like him and everything!"
"DAMMIT NATSU!"
"WOW! EVEN HIS YELL'S COMPLETELY ON POINT!" Happy applauded from the Slayer's shoulder.
"Well of course; Ragna's probably thorough enough that he'd make sure he practices to really sell that it's him," Gray agreed as he too came out into the street (of course only wearing his boxers).
"..." Lucy gave Ragna a long stare as she stared him down. Ragna knew that his surrogate daughter was the most levelheaded person that he knew in the guild, so surely she'd be the one to- "You almost had us, but he picked out someone that looked way too young."
'…I guess a backhanded compliment is still a compliment, but what the hell am I supposed to do now?' Ragna considered, trying to think of a solution before Erza and Makarov threw him out of the guild or worse. Coming up with an answer he tossed the right side of his jacket off his shoulder, let his arm go limp, and closed his right while lighting his Fairy Tail symbol. It took the group a moment as they stared intensely at him… but eventually even they got it.
"WAIT! IT'S REALLY YOU!?" Lucy screamed. Ragna reset his jacket and opened his right eye again. "I-!? HOW-!? YOU LOOK SO YOUNG!"
"…Thank you?" He should've been happier to hear that right now, a lot happier.
"If this is what you really look like, then it's no wonder you were so depressed that everyone was calling you old," Natsu realized, having an odd reflective moment where he actually looked guilty. "Sorry about that."
"Eh, now that I'm back to my old self it's water under the bridge," he assured.
"I… suppose you won't be able to go by your Dad title any further," Erza guessed, still a little in awe of Ragna's new appearance.
"Yeah, I guess that's gone and taken its course," the Reaper admitted, not sure whether or not he was actually disappointed at that fact.
"…I don't think it has." Lucy was the one who'd suggested that bizarre idea, then again she was the one that had suggested this in the first place. "Even if you look so much younger now, that doesn't change how you act towards all of us. As long as you're okay with it, I'll still call you Dad."
"Wait, really?" Ragna asked with an eyebrow raised (his left one since that's the one he's been able to use lately). Turning to Natsu and Happy, the two nodded in agreement. "I mean… sure. I guess you guys can do whatever the hell you want to."
"I don't see any problems with this," Erza agreed, reminding everyone of the oddity that was her going along with this completely.
"…You guys sure you don't want to give me the big brother title?" Ragna thought to try. "…No? Alright."
"I'd just be careful with it," Gray decided to interject, even though he wasn't a part of the 'kids' group. "If you call Ragna Daddy by mistake, that's going to send a pretty different message."
"…Gray?"
"Yeah, Ragna?"
WHAM!
Everyone (after getting over the unfortunate implications of what he'd said) looked up as the Ice user was launched high into the air by Ragna's punch. The Reaper took a deep breath after suddenly expelling his rage all at once before glancing up at the airborne lad he'd sent beyond the clouds.
"Hmm… still needs some getting used to."
"Just a bit," Erza casually agreed.
Once Gray had… landed, he recovered quickly enough and now had a mental note to watch what he said around the Reaper. With that out of the way, the group headed inside and (after much vouching it was really him from the others) the guild got a solid look at the real Reaper.
"Damn, guess Makarov isn't the second oldest looking guy here," Macao commentated, worrying Ragna with just how old everyone really had thought he was.
"Gotta say, now I'm feeling self-conscious," Wakaba agreed, seeming oddly depressed.
"You're not bad looking at least," Loke conceded. Ragna fought the urge to kick his ass since he'd played his part in the recovery. "Maybe if you give it some time you'll end up in the Sorcerer's Weekly Boyfriend Rankings."
"Just ignore these guys, but I'm impressed at your latest glow up," Levi complimented. "You were already really strong before, but now that you can use your other arm I have to wonder what kind of jobs you'll be able to tackle."
"Not much until I get back up to full coordination, but just watch me," Ragna told her confidently.
"That's what I'm talking about; NOW WE'VE GOT A REAL MAN BACK HERE!" Elfman congratulated in his own way. "I'D SAY THOSE CHEATERS IN THE MANLINESS CONTEST HAD BETTER WATCH OUT! …If we're ever allowed back."
"Eh, they might not recognize me so I could probably enter again if they hold it," Ragna teased with a chuckle. "So what's with the stage outside? And where's Mira? Figured she'd want to see the fresh me as well."
"Oh, she'll see you soon enough," Elfman agreed. "But for your first question, take your place up on the stage at the big desk on the right, but don't remove the cover yet. You'll know what you're in for once it's time."
"This was the celebration you guys wanted me to wait for, isn't it?" Ragna figured. "Am I about to get a migraine?"
"No, actually. I think you'll have fun with this," Lucy assured him. "That doesn't mean I'm going to spoil what you're in for, but I think it'll be a good time for all of us."
Ragna trusted Lucy's saner judgements (saner compared to the rest of the guild at least) and headed to his place. He had to wait for quite a while at his appointed place as people started piling in to take their assigned seats. Some of them were people that Ragna had already seen around town and several were certainly questioning his much younger appearance… if they'd even bought that it was really him. Eventually it seemed that everyone had taken their seats though he didn't see his regular team in the crowd aside from Lucy who was front and center.
"TIME TO GET THIS SHOW ON THE ROAD!" Happy declared as he flew in front of the stage in his winged form. Someone had seen fit to give him announcer duties and given how well he'd done in his spar with Natsu, Ragna agreed with the decision. "I'm Happy of the renowned Fairy Tail guild and on stage now we have Ragna, our newest member who just healed himself from paralysis!" Several people in the crowd still appeared doubtful. "…At least I'm 99% sure it's him!"
'So there's still that one percent of him that really doubts that it's me… guess I'll have to live with it,' Ragna thought with a sigh.
"Anyways, to celebrate this occasion we bring to you-!" Happy began as he put his paw up as a signal and the cloth on the desks in front of Ragna faded into light to reveal a cooking station. From behind the stage several carts filled with prime meat, vegetables, spices, and all other types of ingredients were brought in. "A FAIRY TAIL COOKOFF!"
'So that's what they had in store for me. I guess this does sound like a good time,' the Reaper thought as he glanced to the empty table next to him. 'Then that means…'
"AND FOR HIS OPPONENT! CONSTANTLY SEEN IN THE POPULAR SORCERER'S WEEKLY MAGAZINE! THE MAIN CHEF AND HEAD RECEPTIONIST OF FAIRY TAIL! MIRAJANE STRAUSS!"
The crowd went absolutely wild as Mira made her way onto the stage, everyone shouting their love for the model and there even seemed to be a dedicated fan club in the back. She was wearing the same red dress as she always did, but now she also had a white frilly apron on top of it and a tall chef's hat on her head for the occasion, likely making her fans go even crazier as she took her spot at the desk beside Ragna.
"You look good finally healed," she complimented, knowing it was him after seeing him prior with both eyes open. "…Still a little surprised at how young you look."
"I've heard; even from you before. But thanks," Ragna answered back in kind. "This all your idea?"
"Makarov's actually, but when he brought it up to me I could hardly decline," she corrected. "I figured you'd get a kick out this, maybe even help get some coordination back in your cooking skills."
"Right, but on the big stage though? Pressure's on." Ragna smirked at Mira's giggle while Happy continued on.
"These two have been cooking together at the Fairy Tail guild for some time now, so it only makes sense to have our judges be those who already know the cooking! Coming on stage now we have Natsu Dragneel, Gray Fullbuster, and Erza Scarlet!" There was more cheering (mostly for Erza) as the three made their way onto the stage and took their places at the judging tables.
"Not gonna lie; this kinda feels skewed in my favor," Ragna admitted, knowing the connection he shared with most of them.
"Anyone else we would've asked would have voted for me outright to gain my favor," Mira explained. "Here at least Erza's so strict that she'll have to give her honest opinion, Natsu's going to listen to what his stomach and tastebuds say, and Gray's too dense to have any biases."
"…Okay, fair enough," Ragna immediately conceded.
"Now that everyone's here I'll go over the rules!" Happy continued announcing. "This will be a three round match! Each round is its own course going from an appetizer to the main entrée, and finishing with a dessert! Each of our judges holds three coins, one for each round with two bowls representing each of our contestants! Each round each of our judges will put a single coin in a selected bowl to vote with the corresponding chef. Three rounds each carrying three possible points leads to a total of nine points overall! With no possibility of a tie, we'll know who the true leader of Fairy Tail's kitchens is by the end of today!"
There was further cheering, obviously in Mira's favor. Ragna didn't let this get to him, only going deep into thought for what he was going to cook. He had a pretty fair idea of what he was going to do for the first two rounds at least, that last one though… Well, it was all good fun and he'd just have to give it his best shot regardless.
"One further rule! Self-cast magic may only be used in the preparation of the food! No spells that artificially enhance a meal's flavor are allowed!" Happy added sternly.
"Huh, so those exist." Ragna had never come across that brand of spell casting in his reading. "But knowing you, you'd never use them in the first place."
"Now you're starting to read me; is it my turn to be scared?" Mira flirted.
"Not at this point," the Reaper admitted.
"CONTESTANTS READY!" Happy shouted, putting his paw in the air. "GO!"
Mira and Ragna both made a mad dash for their selected carts as the crowd cheered the contestants on. Mira went right for the vegetables while Ragna grabbed the meat and some stock first. The ingredient gathering didn't take too long and soon both participants were at their stations getting their meals ready.
"The energy of these kids," Makarov laughed as he watched with a large mug of beer (he'd gotten a refill before the contest had begun). "Though now I have to start treating Ragna like he's younger than me… can't say that feels all that good."
"Ah, I finally made it. Apologies for the late arrival," a familiar voice sounded. Makarov turned his head to see his old acquaintance; a lankier man with a purple cloak and jagged hat to match. He had a darker complexion and a sharp mustache. "Seems they just started at least."
"Good to see you, Jose," Makarov greeted. "Would you like a beer? It's early in the day so you may not want to start drinking just yet."
"Hah. Don't be so cocky after winning our last drinking match at the summit," Jose answered with a roll of his eyes. "And I don't think a man of any size should be drinking that much, least of all one in your natural state."
"…You do remember Cana, correct?" Makarov asked, pointing to the woman who was already halfway through the large barrel of drink she'd brought just to have something to sip during the competition. Jose shrugged as he conceded the point. "Still, I'm happy that you accepted our last minute invitation."
"I didn't have too much on my plate, so a chance to visit my sister guild felt like a good way to spend my time," the leader of the Phantom Lord guild answered. "Also it gave me chance to blow off the meeting I had scheduled with the Magic Council today."
"Hah, what will the youngsters of your guild think when they look to you for inspiration?" Makarov jokingly chided.
"Don't give me that; we're both Saints in title only." The two master laughed at their argument before Jose got a good look at the competitors. "Mira comes highly ranked as a chef, yet this man from out of nowhere thinks he stands a chance?"
"I can personally vouch for his cooking, though it'd never be enough to dissuade most people from voting for Mira anyways. The selection we have here is the most even footing we can give both challengers."
"Yes, Mira is quite the celebrity after all," the follow master agreed.
"That can also be said for most of your guild as well, I've heard that you've been making quite the commotion as of late with your jobs," Makarov laughed. "If you want to take the position of most destructive guild in Fiore, then be my guest! You'd save me a hell of a headache!"
"Nothing of the like; I just think some competition between the two guilds is good and…" Jose seemed to pause as he looked not at the stage, but at someone standing just off to the side. "That girl… is she another of your new members?"
"You mean Lucy?" Makarov asked for clarification. "She joined our guild at the exact same time as Ragna up there. Apparently they had just met before coming here, but they're already close enough that she considers him to be a father to her." He chuckled. "Just in case you were getting any ideas."
"I don't particularly have a taste for blondes, but thanks for the warning," Jose said, though something about his words seemed… cold. The expression faded quickly as he smirked at Makarov. "Though the man on the stage hardly looks old enough to be her father."
"He didn't use to! That's why we're celebrating!"
"…I see."
"You don't see."
"I really don't."
Soon enough Mira had finished with her appetizer and brought it before the judges. She'd made a basic salad, so it was hardly surprising that she was able to present before Ragna who was still mixing his soup starter. Mira's salad was fairly basic in appearance: lettuce, tomatoes, bits of onions, some cheese, slices of boiled egg, and a bit of grilled chicken sprinkled within. But it wasn't the ingredients that made this dish her entry, Mira had developed her own homemade brand of dressing and the judges got their immediate taste of it.
"A nice balance and a very simple way to start our three courses," Erza commended after she'd taken a forkful with everything on it. "Normally I think it would be a waste that one single ingredient is bringing this entire dish together, but since the dressing is able to cover and enhance every part of the dish it actually works to it favor."
"I agree, and the lettuce here is a perfect opener," Gray elaborated. "Crisp, light, leaves plenty of room for what's ahead while being its own thing."
"…There's not nearly enough chicken in mine," Natsu said, airing his grievances.
"There's more to food than just meat, you flame head," Grey argued.
"Yeah, well why would you want to skip out on the best part, ice ass," Natsu shot back.
"Boys. Behave."
"Yes, Erza," the two said in unison as Mira headed back to her table to wait for the next round.
They had to wait a bit longer for Ragna to finish his soup, but it wasn't too long thankfully as Ragna came forward with three bowls of hot soup for the three. There was plenty of vegetables in this dish along with thick chunks of perfectly seared beef and the broth was plenty thick with flavor.
"Oh yeah! Now this is what I'm talking about!" Natsu said eagerly before taking his first bite, finding that the flavors certainly agreed with him. "Ah man, so good!"
"Clam down," Gray grunted as he tried it himself. "…Don't get me wrong, this is really good. But it's so damn heavy for an appetizer. Also, not really a fan of hot food most of the time."
"This isn't payback for me almost sending you into orbit, is it?" Ragna had to ask.
"Nah, I'm not petty."
"Just had to check."
"I think I'm in agreement with Gray myself, it's too hearty to be just a starter," Erza said as she put her first coin in Mira's bowl and Gray followed suit.
"Come on guys! That soup was really good!" Natsu whined.
"Then vote for it; each of us have the power to make our own choice each round," the Ice user reminded. Natsu (still grumbling slightly) put his coin in Ragna's bowl.
"And Mira takes the first round!" Happy declared. "A single point might not seem like much on an advantage especially in the first round, but if Mira does a clean sweep and earns three points in the next round then the contest is already decided! Let's see if Ragna can keep that from happening.
'Not good, she managed to appeal to a majority of the tastes and that cost me,' Ragna thought as he looked at the food that was still available. 'At least I already know what I'm making for round two.'
"Next up the entrees!" the cat declared. "Chefs get cooking!"
Mira immediately went for some of the already prepared dough (she'd made some last night for both of them to use in the tournament) as well as some hearty vegetables and some more good cuts of chicken. She also gathered ingredients for gravy and was multitasking right from the start. Ragna meanwhile went… solely for the meat and spices.
"He's… gotta be doing more than just meat, right?" Gray asked his fellow judges Ragna immediately started mixing his spices together in a mortar and pestle. "He… can't just be banking on Natsu's vote, right?"
"We'll just have to see," Erza decided as she turned her attention to Mira. "I recognize that chicken pot pie that she's going to present; she told me earlier that it was a recipe that she worked on with Ragna."
"Meaning she thinks that it's the best choice to play after working together or she's managed to improve the recipe without him knowing. Either way, it probably going to be difficult for Ragna's meat dish alone to beat." Gray's summary was further reinforced as he realized just how Ragna was preparing his food. "Is he just… barbequing it? Not even any special like flambe?"
"Who cares how it's prepared, long as it tastes good," Natsu argued.
Once again, Mira was the first to bring her food to the judges first. Normally a pie would take far longer to bake than simply grilling meat, but either Ragna was insistent on going second again or this was a different process. Either way, all three judges were once again unanimous that they had a strong contender.
"Now this is what I can an entrée," Gray said in appreciation. "Light and fluffy crust, a hearty filling that still tastes balanced, heck I don't even mind that it's warm."
"Plenty of meat too!" Natsu complimented.
"Now now Natsu, you need your vegetables as well," Erza lectured, though far from as intensely as she usually was. "And thankfully this dish has plenty of them to offer. It's still more comfort food than something you should always enjoy, but I certainly feel plenty of comfort just by eating it."
"Aw man, that was a really good review from everyone," Levi concluded. "Has Ragna done anything special with his dish yet?"
"Nope, just plain BBQ," Elf man assured, having kept a constant eye on the Reaper while he'd been grilling. "I guess that's an unusual spice combination he has for a rub, but how is that going to overcome one of my sister's better dishes? One that he helped her on at that."
"I think Mira's got this one in the bag, not there was much doubt to begin with," Loke said coolly.
For Ragna's meal, he specifically had chosen to make a platter filled with ribs. He set each plate down before the waiting judges, looking oddly confident in his choice.
"So… is that it?" Gray asked for clarification. "Like there isn't any hidden extra step or some secret ingredient you're going to add in at the last minute?"
"Nah, what you see is what you get. Just give them a try; the results will speak for themselves," the Reaper insisted.
Shrugging (and wondering if he was taking the contest seriously at this point) Gray went for a bite of his ribs only to stop as he was distracted by sounds of obnoxious scarfing coming from beside him. He figured it was Natsu too eager to try the newest meat dish… only it was actually Erza. The normally reserved (unless enraged) S-Rank was unable to stop herself as she mercilessly tore into the meat she'd been given. Even Natsu seemed too awestruck to try his own plate before Erza had reduced her own meal to a pile of bones and staring shocked at the remains after she'd done so.
"Uhhhhhhhh… what?" Lucy asked.
"This is new to me too," Happy commentated beside her as Natsu and Gray overcame their surprise long enough to try a bite themselves… and immediately going into a similar frenzy as Erza. "Huh."
"It.. it came right off the bone," Gray realized, completely awestruck. "It just about melts in your mouth and the flavors… the spices don't distract from the meat; the enhance it as well as add their own spin on top of it."
…With that review given, Ragna made a clean sweep of the second round. His entrée earned him three points and put him firmly in the lead by two going into the final round.
'Where's he been hiding that?' Mira wondered curiously.
"AND A SURPRISE UPSET FROM RAGNA!" Happy announced, though the audience was too stunned by the display (mostly Erza's reaction) to cheer or comment. "Now for the dessert round! Ragna just needs one single point to clench his victory, but Mira has some of the best sweets out there! Let's see what both contestants are capable of as they give it their all!"
'…Dammit, I'm in trouble,' Ragna thought, not moving from his station as Mira was already gathering her ingredients. 'My best chance was having already won by now, but I can't just throw away this last round. Knowing Mira, it might not be impossible for her to pull a clean sweep. Think, what are my options?'
Since he needed only a single point, he considered going after only Natsu's approval but it would be difficult to work a meat dish as a dessert and now wasn't the time to experiment. Going after Gray meant making something cold and while he could make a decent ice cream from scratch that wouldn't be nearly enough to win him over by itself, and that would all but forfeit Natsu's vote. As for Erza… if he wanted her vote, he had to win in quality outright or impress her in some bizarre way.
'I… have to try and get a single vote from one of them, but to have the best chance I need to try to appeal to all of them and hope they like the dish better than Mira's. Something cold but is also hot and can be good overall…' Ragna wracked his head as he glanced over the ingredients… and coming up with an odd combination. "Brain blast!"
"And he's finally moving," Cana observed as she put down her already finished barrel of booze. "Took him long enough, but… what the hell is he grabbing?"
While Ragna was taking what he needed to make his own ice cream (with strawberries for flavor), he was also grabbing some corn syrup, baking soda, and… spicy peppers? While the audience was obviously confused by his choice in produce, Ragna couldn't afford to care as he set to work. Now that he had both hands working, he was actually able to cast spells in his left hand while he prepared the other food with his right (still needed to practice casting with that hand). While it was still in a cantrip state, he managed to create a good enough ice spell to speed the process of making the ice cream while his other hand went to work on the peppers. With them he made a strange sort of gel after mixing in the corn syrup and other bizarre ingredients he'd gathered. With his ice cream finished, he returned his full attention to the mystery mixture and cast another spell which caused it to gather together and tighten.
"That's a Condensing spell," Levi realized. "It's a gravity based one, but it's still on cantrip grade meaning it's usually seen as useless in casting especially with how difficult it would be to learn."
"But what's he applying it here for, and with all of those peppers and other ingredients?" Elfman had to question right as Ragna's mixture crystallized. Breaking it the crystal apart in shards, he sprinkled it over the three bowls of ice cream he'd prepared. "He's… using it as a topper?"
"Spicy, creamy, and sweet with strawberries… just what is he trying to do?" Loke tried to figure as Ragna set each bowl in front of the judges.
"Really? Cold stuff?" Natsu had to asked.
"With some hot and spicy added on top of it," Gray added. "…Are you trying to lose both us with this?"
"We were just blown away with his basic barbeque, so maybe this is also an unexpected surprise?" Erza suggested, though she herself was less than confident. All three of them took a bite in unison and none of them hated it. In fact… it seemed thought provoking.
"So I still think the ice cream's okay, but it's helped a lot by those crystals you threw in," Natsu judged as another of the crystals went off in his mouth in small burst of spice. "Each pop's a sudden burst of something resembling fire and I kinda dig it."
"I like it too, but in the opposite way," Gray added. "I'm more of a fan of the ice cream, but the spice flakes aren't bad. In fact they break up the taste of the ice cream here and there with their sudden pops. I get to keep enjoying the ice cream when they fade and I don't get tired of the taste as easily."
"So in short… this dish is both of you," Erza realized, causing Natsu and Gray to balk at the assessment. "Both parts of this dish are good on their own, but it takes them mixing together to create something truly unique that no one expected; something that's even better than the sum of their parts when applied correctly."
Natsu and Gray paused at that, glancing each other's way. They were far from convinced at Erza's claim, even with the example that had been shoved right in their face… but for once they weren't glaring at each other.
"…I think Ragna just won," Lucy realized. "He managed to not only impress all three of them, but even gave an example to Erza's desire to get Natsu and Gray to work together… and all with a dessert."
"That is a pretty strong entry, but maybe Mira can top it somehow?" Happy guessed; at the very least keeping an open mind. "Though… she'd have to find some way to earn all three points like Ragna did last round."
"What'd she make anyways? I was way too focused on Ragna's insane cooking ideas to watch," Lucy noted as she saw Mira bringing up her… strawberry shortcake. "…Is she really hoping that's what gives her the win?"
"I mean it's Erza's favorite treat," Happy answered but he didn't sound any more convinced than she did. All three of the judges again took their bites, and it was clear that most of them were far from impressed.
"You're… sure this is what you're going with?" Natsu asked. Ragna might've been worried that Mira was going to pull a surprise out of nowhere like he had in the second round, but this was after the judges had their taste. "Don't get me wrong, I like this. But are you sure?"
"Same, it's a really good strawberry shortcake. This is probably the best one I've ever tasted so it's a least a strong entry but nothing all that revolutionary like Ragna's entry." Despite Gray's clear criticisms, Mira's expression hadn't changed in the slightest from her smiling form. "What about you Erza? What do you think about the-?"
"IT WINS."
'…Shit, really!?' Ragna realized.
"You… mean it's got your vote?" Natsu tried. "I guess if you feel that strongly about it-"
"NO. I MEAN IT WINS. CAN'T YOU TASTE IT? IT'S THE OBVIOUS WINNER!"
With the deathly aura around Erza, Gray threw his coin into Mira's bowl giving the receptionist his vote after a bit of 'helpful nudging' from the redhead. Natsu couldn't argue either and firmly placed his coin in the appropriate bowl giving Mira the win.
"Damn," Ragna grumbled. Mira's giggle did seem a touch more demonic now. "So I go through all of that soul searching, come up with a dish that not only teaches a lesson and puts my new arm to good use, and tastes pretty damn good… and you just take it apart like that."
"It's pretty simple; that last round you were cooking as an optimist while I decided to cook as a realist. You played to be the better cook, I played to be the winner of the contest. Your message was amazing honestly, but… nothing gets between Erza and her love of strawberry cake. Especially after all of the improvements I made."
"Fine, guess you had to work hard to even blindside me," Ragna finally conceded with a shrug. "I still had fun, so it's not like I lost anything by losing in-"
"AND NOW TO ANNONCE THE GRAND PRIZE!" came Makarov's cry out of nowhere as the diminutive guild leader flipped through the air where he'd been standing with Jose and landed in the center of the stage.
"Grand Prize?" Ragna repeated. Mira was at just as much of a loss as he was. Neither Erza nor Gray seemed informed either.
"Since Mira was our grand winner here, she gets the Grand Prize of…" Makarov paused for dramatic effect. "Making our loser have to fulfill the most embarrassing request she can think of!"
"Wait! What!?" Ragna shouted. "I DIDN'T SIGN UP FOR THIS!"
"Master! This is hardly fair!" Mira shouted in Ragna's defense.
"Now now, Mira, this all in good fun," Makarov assured her. "Just think of a little something for your prize. That's not too much, is it?"
"HAVE HIM DRESS UP AS A MAID FOR A DAY!" Cana called out (she wasn't drunk in her suggestion either).
"NO! A BABY!" came Loke's call.
"HAVE HIM GO AS AN OLD MAN! HAMMER THE POINT IN ONE LAST TIME!" Wakaba shouted (apparently eager to hold onto their fleeting youth one final time).
"NO! KICK HIS ASS INTO THE SKY THIS TIME!" Gray declared only to get a suspecting look from Erza. "What? I wasn't acting petty earlier and this time it's just being fair."
Mira was overwhelmed as she tried to come up with a decision, everyone shouting demeaning challenges for their local Reaper. Ragna just gave her an annoyed grunt and a shrug, not looking forward to this in the slightest but also not holding this against her. She could hardly take that to heart though.
"EVERYONE HOLD ON! THIS CONTEST ISN'T OVER YET!" Happy shouted out, breaking all of the jeering from the crowd. "LOOK AT NATSU!"
…The Fire Dragon Slayer had yet to fully take his hand off the single coin he had in Mira's bowl. He honestly seemed to be struggling as he held onto it, an effort that was pushed all the further as Erza's overwhelming aura returned.
"NATSU…" she roared softly.
"I… I… scream…"
"DON'T YOU DARE."
"…FOR ICE CREEEEEEEAM!"
Taking the coin out of Mira's bowl, Natsu unleashed one final surge of willpower as he slammed it into Ragna's bowl with the other two. Finally moving his hand off of the coin, he slumped forward on the table as his energy finally gave out. Concluding his performance, he gave Ragna a thumbs up.
"Really… liked your… cooking…"
'Oh my brave baby boy. Oh my stupid suicidally brave baby boy.'
"Natsu." Even though her aura was gone, Erza didn't seem any less terrifying.
"…yes?" Natsu could barely squeak out.
"I see that you've taken the decision into your own hands despite my… feelings," she noted. "I'll have to look out for that bravery while we're sparring."
"Uh… yeah?" he answered, sweating bullets but all the same trying not to lose it. "I'll be sure to show ya what I've got when-"
"Translation," Gray cut in. "How dare you go against what I'd already decided, I hope you're ready for me to kill your ass when we're fighting."
…Erza didn't correct him.
'Pretty sure I owe it to him to make sure he lives through this,' Ragna considered before looking at Makarov who'd been stunned into silence since Natsu's sudden reversal. "So…"
"Ahem," the guild leader cleared his throat as he recollected himself. "In light of Natsu's… change of heart, I'll now award Ragna his well-deserved prize." Ragna wondered why the prizes were different depending on who won, but stayed silent as Makarov grew one of his hands and… gave him a pat on the shoulder. "Well done."
"…OH BULLSHIT!" Ragna roared. "You guys were ready to have me play dress up as a baby or worse for losing, and that's what I get for winning!?"
"What? Are words of encouragement from your favorite guild leader really worth so little to you?" Makarov asked, sounding rather hurt at the development. "Or... are you just upset because you won't be able to embarrass Mira?"
"DON'T GASLIGHT ME OLD MAN! I SHOULD GET SOMETHING HALF AS GOOD AS WHAT SHE WAS GETTING! AND YOU KNOW I'D NEVER PRESSURE HER OR ANYONE ELSE INTO THAT CRAP!" He then turned to the rather 'defensive' Mira fans. "Not that any of you would have problem with her waiting tables in a swimsuit for the day."
"Why not? It's close to what I wear," Gray decided to input.
"Not the point, Gray," the Reaper had to clarify once more before shaking his head. "You know what? Just forget it. For now, I'll just be happy that I avoided your crap and got my eye and arm working again."
"I suppose that's for the best," the guild master chuckled while everyone else decided they may as well leave things as they were.
"Oh no, all of you aren't getting off the hook that easily!" Mira declared. Ragna considered talking her out of whatever she was about to try… but decided after the teasing he'd just gotten this would be the true just desserts of the day. "And I just happen to have the perfect reward in mind."
Later -Lucy's House-
"He's already been in there for an hour," Lucy sighed as she stood outside her bathroom door which had been emitting steam for the last while. "If he keeps this up, he'll shrivel up completely."
"You mean that's not just myth?" Natsu asked from beside her.
"WHAT ARE YOU DOING IN MY HOUSE!" Lucy screamed as she dive-kicked at Natsu, a move which he barely guarded against.
"You let me in here!" he shouted.
"…I did?"
"Yeah, Gray and Happy too," Natsu said as he pointed behind him to the fellow Fairy Tail wizards.
"…Sorry, force of habit thanks to some people."
"You really shouldn't let those guys into your house in the first place," Happy lectured.
"You're those people and I didn't let you in! That's the whole point!" Lucy shouted.
"Ignoring Ragna for the moment while he finishes up in there, you realize that you're in for hell, right Natsu?" Gray told him realistically. "Erza's really going to be gunning for you when you finally have your match. As if you weren't already in trouble."
"I know, I know," the pink haired wizard sighed. "Ragna talked to her; said something about needing me for a couple of days to buy time. I think he's going to do whatever he can to make sure I'm ready for her wrath when the time comes."
"A few days, you really think that's going to be enough?" Lucy asked worriedly.
"I don't have much of a choice either way, but if Ragna thinks he can help then I'm going to have to take whatever he's willing to give," Natsu answered, right before Lucy's water finally stopped running. "Finally, that was ridiculous."
"You're not the one that has to pay the water bill," Lucy sighed. "At least he bought his own shampoo and cologne, though he did spend quite a bit on it. This… seems like overkill for any date honestly."
"Maybe it's not," Gray countered. "Think about it; Ragna's been stuck with his eye and arm paralyzed since you've known him and he's constantly been called an old man by everyone despite being fairly young. This is his first real date in who knows how long; he's going to want to make it count."
"That's… that makes a lot of sense," Happy agreed.
"…Also if he sees Mira in half a percent, half of A SINGLE PERCENT, of the same light most of the other guys in the guild see her; he's gonna want to try for a second date."
"Oh, now you're not oblivious," came Ragna's call from inside the bathroom.
"Still, smart thinking on Mira's part to make sure part of his winning conditions was that no one could follow them on their date," Lucy commended. "…Do you think they'll listen though?"
"She threatened to take their bar privileges away for a week if they tried, so they might," Happy considered. "But… I think there are still going to be plenty of people still trying to listen in."
"I know what you mean; even I'm a little tempted to," Lucy admitted, only to get disappointed looks from the boys. "Not that I'm going to, just that I'm still curious."
"They deserve their privacy," Happy insisted.
"For once I'm in agreement with the cat," Ragna said as he finally exited from the bathroom. He was wearing a black dress shirt with a crimson tie and a blood red vest with slacks for bottoms and appropriate dress shoes. He hadn't tried anything with his hair, not that it would listen to most styling gels in the first place. "How do I look?"
"Nothing close to what we'd expect a few days ago," Natsu told him without hesitation.
"Hah."
"You look good," Lucy assured him right as there was a knock on her front door. "And you got ready just in time."
'At least nothing went wrong with the prep work,' Ragna thought as he headed to Lucy's front door, everyone following to see that. He opened the door to see his date for the night waiting for him… wearing what she normally did. "Not to say you don't look nice, but am I overdressed?"
"Just a bit, but I'm sure that you can make do," Mira assured him. Despite saying that, Ragna wasted no time in taking his favorite coat out of storage and throwing that back on. "There, much better."
"Glad you agree," Ragna answered with a smirk before closing the door behind him, Lucy and the others trying their best not to look too disappointed. "So I'm happy that you're making good on your pity date promise, but I don't think we'll be getting much privacy. Even if they aren't part of our guild, we're gonna have eyes on us all night… well eyes admiring you and eyes glaring at me making sure I don't try anything."
"Are you asking that us to go somewhere private so that can try something?" Mira asked with her regular smile.
"Mira, just going out with you is putting me on plenty of Shit Lists. Let's not knock the hornet's nest and get me on their kill lists."
"Alright, but I think I have just the event for us," she assured him. "You'll enjoy yourself, that's a promise."
"I've already been made that promise once today… and I guess the turnout wasn't too bad," Ragna admitted as he offered the receptionist his arm. "Shall we?"
"Right this way," Mira answered as she hooked arms and started walking down.
"…Also, did Elfman have anything to say about this? Trying not to upset the guy."
"Eh, he's mature enough to know I can make my own choices, though he's probably happier that it's you instead of some of my other admirers," she answered as the two made their way down the streets.
"…What about you? You at all happy that it's me?" Ragna questioned, deciding to be a bit bolder for once.
"Get back to me after our date; I'll have to consider it while we're out."
"Yes, ma'am."
The Next Day
"So where were you last night?" Macao asked, unable to keep his usually calmer composure. "None of us saw you around town on your date with Mira… not that we were looking."
Ragna was sitting at his usual spot in the guild right at his team's usual table. He and Natsu hadn't left yet to try and prepare the Dragon Slayer for Erza's now enhanced wrath, instead electing to start the day off with a proper breakfast and (a rare sight for the Reaper) a large mug of frothy beer.
"You wouldn't have found us if you had been looking… which you were," Ragna answered realistically. Most of the men (some of them not even guys from the guild) couldn't dispute the claim. Apparently there had been an (expertly coordinated) undercover watch at all of the popular restaurants to make sure the Reaper didn't go too far out of line. "Mira knew that you guys would be out there waiting for the two of us even after telling you not to, so instead we went out of town on a late night job."
"A… late night job?" Wakaba repeated as the men gathered exchanged confused glances. "That was your date?"
"Yep, one that had us fighting through some monsters to gather a strain of rare herbs that can only be harvested at night. Apparently, she'd been saving that job for the two of us to do together."
"And Mira… fought alongside you?" Loke asked. Ragna nodded and the womanizer smirked, almost in pity for the man. "Then that means you saw her Satan Soul side up close?"
"Oh yeah, front row seats and everything. It was so close when she unleashed it, I couldn't look away for even a second. Felt every bit of it, think I literally tasted the power for a moment there too."
As Ragna began taking a long swig of beer to (what the guys assumed) help him forget last night's events, much of the gathered crowd gave relieved sighs. Clearly Ragna had taken one look at the onslaught of power and had either crumpled completely if not outright run for the hills. The gathered crowd started to part as they were satisfied with the turn of events, only to be frozen by the heavy slamming of Ragna's mug on the table sounded through the entire guild. The Reaper had the cockiest smile that anyone had seen on him.
"JOKE'S ON ALL OF YOU! I'M INTO THAT SHIT!"
Author's Note
Storm: There… there was just no other way I could possibly end a chapter with that setup. I had to take this chance.
Happy: Did you have to work hard to get there?
Storm: Nah, it just came to me just before I started writing the last bit. I considered making that joke the opening of the next chapter, but I figured it would be better if I just cashed in on it now.
Happy: You seem pretty proud of yourself for the joke. Either way, that's the end of the filler? Onto Demon Island?
Storm: That's right, though obviously there's going to be a few changes with the start of the arc already. Like I had Natsu's disguise idea play out earlier in a different context, so other events will likely be changed as well. Don't expect a pure 1 to 1, even excluding Ragna… actually, he's not even going to be in most of the next chapter. At the very least he's far from the focus of it.
Happy: An absence of Ragna for more than a few paragraphs? Are you going to be okay?
Storm: Very funny, Happy. But yeah, I've needed to give some of the Fairy Tail main cast a real chance to shine in the spotlight. I'll do my best so it's still a different experience to watching the show or reading the manga still.
Happy: If that's the case… Can I have a badass moment next arc?
Storm: Wait, what?
Happy: I'm serious, can you possibly make it so that I have a legit badass moment while we're on Demon Island?
Storm: …You know what? Let's put Chekov's gun on the table because by the end of the next arc it's getting fired. You want a badass moment? You're getting a badass moment!
Happy: Sweet!
Storm: Alright, let's move onto the reviews.
Vilostrike218: Hey, I finally got his eye and arm working again. Let's leave that aside for now.
The Unplanner: To be fair to Tager he isn't meant to be the lightning guy, he's the Supplex you so hard that he become a nuke in the process.
ChaosSpartan999: Nice idea, but I think I'll keep it hidden for now.
Reclusive Dork: No Aramasa for the foreseeable future, sorry.
Wlyman2009: …You know that by the whimsy of the universe she'd end up on the island alone, right?
Kitsune No Hi: And here you go after all of this time!
Spartastic 4: All those answered here, hope it was worth it.
Shadow-Ragna: No plans for that future arc just yet.
Gm9000: Oh, almost certainly. With those two it would be impossible for there to not be a fight.
Patricia Louise A. Pena: We'll have to see how much he tries to push Ragna's buttons (hopefully one of them isn't 5B)
EnteTheSlayer: You're welcome!
P3R50N4: Not much in the reaction setting aside from his core team.
Sarcasm Sage 626: Thanks for the lengthy review as always.
Peanutsaber: Eh, just got plans for now.
GerardJS84: Seems to be a heavily requested fight at the moment.
Ulti matrix bearer: Not much of a conversation, Ragna didn't want to kill but twelve wasn't giving him a choice.
Primus1661: Wendy, oh boy. That's a ways off still.
NicScourge: Yeah, Erza was able to give him a damn good fight like this. Maybe now Ragna can transfer some of that to Natsu.
Wiz: Haven't watched the 100 year quest just yet, but thanks for the review and Erza's still keeping said events of her past a secret much like Ragna is for his own.
Thanks so much for the support everyone! Until next time!
Ciao!