A/N: I'll be away from my computer for most of the day tomorrow, so double update today!
The woman–Perse–stopped in her pacing and stared at them. There were more windows in this room, affording them more light in which to see one another. Perse was short, shorter than Lucy or Mirajane, with dark eyes framed by square glasses and dark hair tied up in a bun. Even her outfit was dark, a dress going down past her knees with a fanny pack of all things tied around her waist. All these things could have conveyed a woman of great poise, instead all Cobra could notice was that her hair was starting to loosen from the bun in a way that made it seem like she'd put it up in a hurry. Or that her eyes were baggy enough to store the contents of Lucy's purse. Although, the glare they gave off almost neutralized their tired appearance.
Her voice was cold and crisp as she spoke. "What are you doing here Mirajane? You're only going to get yourself in trouble." She barely examined the other two in the room.
"I'm no stranger to trouble myself, unfortunately," Mirajane replied. "And I know I came here unannounced, and for that, I apologize. But like I said, I haven't been able to contact you for several days now, so I decided to take matters into my own hands. As the person who leased that building to me, you're the only one who can answer them."
Cobra swore Perse's eye twitched. She adjusted her glasses and sighed. "Surely you've figured it out by now. Your little shop is done. You should move on."
"But what kind of small business owner would that make me if I ran away from my mistakes? I have a duty to my customers…and my employees." She looked at both of them, and Cobra wanted to hiss. Ok, so it's not like this woman didn't already know that he was involved, but did she have to look at him like that?
Perse gave her a withering look for him. "I'd need to hold you back anyway, but I won't answer any of your questions. We're through."
Mirajane walked toward her, looking back at Cobra and Lucy. "Well, you heard her. I need to discuss some things in private."
Lucy nodded. Then, in a reverse of what happened downstairs, she gently took his arm and moved him forward. He surprised himself by how he stared at the scene before him. He guessed that this Perse, if that was her real name, was a mage as well, but her strength and abilities he couldn't imagine.
Yet, he couldn't stay to watch. They had their own place to be. Feeling pressure build behind him, the two moved to the rightmost wall, where a door awaited them. And beyond that door…Percy.
He opened the door, for the first time in his life, silently wishing the best for Mirajane, before the door closed behind them.