The first thing he saw upon exiting Lucy's apartment building was a smiling Macbeth. Not a creepy smile, not a smirking grin, but a peaceful expression. How many times had he seen that look on his guildmate? Of course, it was directed squarely at Mirajane. Whose face he–fortunately–could not see with her back turned.
The instant Macbeth spotted Cobra and Lucy making their way over, his smile vanished and he turned to the side. Mirajane's head tilted in confusion before turning around and, upon seeing Lucy, opened her mouth in surprise. "Lucy!" she called to her friend, taking a few steps in their direction. Her gaze shifted to Cobra and she stopped. "Cobra…"
"Mira, it's ok. He didn't bully me into coming out," Lucy said.
Mirajane peered at him dubiously. "Is that so?"
"It's true, I just talked with her. You should be grateful she's out here though, she's got a lot of useful information."
"I do not," Lucy huffed. "I've barely anything."
"That's not how it looked to me…"
"Oh, be quiet for now, you. I said I've got almost nothing, not entirely nothing."
"Well, I think…"
Between their bantering, Cobra kept tabs on the barmaid's mood. At first, skepticism dominated her face, but as he and Lucy continued, the skepticism melted away to wonder.
"…I see," Mirajane commented, in a voice too low for Lucy to hear. She clapped her hands together, a smile finally gracing her features. "I'm glad you're here Lucy. There's quite a lot we should go over, but how about we do it someplace a little more private?"