Disclaimer: I am not Hiro Mashima.

"Rest in peace, sister. I'll see you soon," she whispered, smiling sadly. With a heavy heart, she turned on her heels and left the cemetery, now heading straight to the guild. She felt that enough was enough, it was no longer her time to mourn. She should enjoy her life again and socialize with people, and not just Natsu. From now on, she would try to smile more and be happy. For Lisanna.

6. Revelation

Natsu was feeling particularly happy today, and no doubt, the surprising event from last night played a big part for it.

The kiss… It was pure fluke on his side, as far as he was certain. A mere friendly gesture which somehow managed to occupy his mind for the entire night that he couldn't sleep a wink.

During his sleepless night, he replayed that particular scene thousands of times as he lay against his hammock. It was all happening so fast, but his mind remembered every detail of it. Everything was still very fresh. The way Mirajane stared at him with her big blue eyes, the ever-so-evident scent of her perfume when she leaned in, closing the gap between their faces, and the feel of her soft lips touching his skin. How could he possibly forget that? That was, by far, the most intimate gesture he had ever received from any girl.

His hand reflexively traveled up to his cheek for the umpteenth time that night, a grin crept up to his face as he did so. A strange warm feeling blossomed inside his stomach, spreading all the way to his chest, and he silently wondered whether it was a good thing or not.

He turned his body sideway, staring absentmindedly at Happy's sleeping figure now. He wondered along the way if Mirajane was wide awake on her bed as well, thinking the same thing. But then again, why would she? The thought of Mirajane possibly think of him that way was pleasing, but he knew that it was too good to be true. There was no way that could ever happen, so he quickly brushed that stupid thought aside.

Even then, erasing that thought from his mind didn't obliterate the weird feelings he had been experiencing since last night. Unfortunately, staying up all night didn't help in sorting out this jumbled mess of a feeling either. He tugged on his pink locks in frustration, cursing himself and his stupid feelings.

What in the world should he do?

Sigh. He really had no idea.

One thing he knew for sure that he needed to see Mirajane again. He wasn't sure why, but he just had to. He had had this foreign feelings for quite some time now, but the event from last night just added to the pile.

Driven by his eagerness, he arrived first thing in the morning to find the guild was still—unsurprisingly—empty. He huffed, plopping down on one of the chairs in disappointment. Almost immediately, his enhanced hearing caught some movements from the second floor.

"Natsu, eh? You're up unusually early," Makarov accosted, before descending the stairs to approach the said boy.

Natsu turned his chin toward his direction. "I could say the same thing to you, gramps."

"On the contrary, actually. It's quite a normal time for me to be at the guild. Who do you think opened the guild door?"

Letting the words sink in, he was almost embarrassed to admit that the thought didn't occur to him at all, so he merely let out a sheepish chuckle.

The guild master took a seat on the vacant chair beside him, and rubbed the back of his head slowly. "Perhaps one day I should pass on this kind of responsibility to someone. Waking up so early in the morning every day is getting quite tiresome at this age."

Natsu's eyebrows shot up in surprise. "You mean, you're going to retire?"

"That's not what I mean, brat. I'm just saying that it would be nice to have someone take over my responsibility for opening the guild door every damn morning."

"Well, you can leave it to me, gramps! I could definitely do that!" the dragon slayer offered, grinning confidently.

Makarov glanced at him, giving the boy a once-over before shaking his head disapprovingly. "No, Natsu. You're not suitable for this job."

His wide grin immediately fell. "What do you mean? What's wrong with me?"

"Too reckless," the elder disregarded, much to the dragon slayer's annoyance. "You'd probably end up losing the keys."

"No way, that ain't gonna happen! You can trust me gramps!"

No longer listening, the former rubbed his chin slowly as his mind ran through the list of members of the guild he deemed responsible enough.

Let's see… Macao? Hmm, I don't think so. Both he and Wakaba never comes before 10.

"Oi, gramps! Are you listening?"

Laxus? Nah, he barely comes to the guild.

"Don't ignore me!"

Erza? Hmm… She's a promising candidate. Very responsible, highly trustworthy, perfectly disciplined—

"Naaatsuuuu, why did you leave mee?" Happy's loud moan suddenly filled the air, instantly breaking his train of thoughts.

The exceed floated into the empty guild hall with half-lidded eyes and bare minimum amount of consciousness. He was already annoyed that his partner decided to wake him up at the earliest hour possible, telling him to go to the guild right now, and then he had the audacity to leave him behind by going at such a fast pace that his sleepy body had a hard time keeping up with. Leave it to Natsu to ruin his mood in the morning.

Natsu turned his attention to the cat, and raised an eyebrow. "Who's leaving you? You were just flying too slow," he countered easily.

"No. You were going too fast!"

"I did not!"

"Did too!"

"I walked in my usual pace!"

"Walked? You ran like there's no tomorrow!"

Natsu paused for a moment. Did he actually ran all the way here? Even if he did, he didn't remember. The moment he left his house, his body instantly turned autopilot, his mind too clouded with his own thoughts, and before he knew it, he found himself already reaching the guild. He wondered if Happy was just exaggerating things. Nevertheless, he wasn't going to back out in this argument and let Happy win. "Well, if you think so, then why didn't you fly faster?"

Happy glared at his partner in disbelief. How dare he? It was one thing to wake him up and then ditched him, but turning the tables and putting the blame on him? He would have snapped a nasty retort and lashed out at him if only he had the energy, but right now he didn't so he decided to let it slide just for this once and merely dismissed him, "Whatever, Natsu. I'm going back to sleep." He dropped onto the table to lay down. Before closing his eyes though, he added, "But this is not okay, you hear me, Natsu? And I'm not talking to you."

The latter merely rolled his eyes. "Well, no shit. You're gonna sleep anyway."

Sure enough, his partner already snored just seconds later, and Natsu was sure he didn't even bother staying sober to listen to his reply. He muttered a "Seriously, what the hell is his problem?" to himself before returning his attention to Makarov.

"I heard you took a job with Mirajane," Makarov finally said after deciding that it was safe to speak now. He shifted his gaze from the blue cat to his companion. "How did it go?"

Natsu shrugged his left shoulder. "Pretty well. At first I thought it was such a boring job. I mean, picking up plants? Seriously? I ain't becoming a wizard of Fairy Tail for nothing! But then it turns out that there's an evil wizard involved in this, and things got a little more exciting…" he paused to let out an annoyed huff. His expression turned sour. "…until Mira stole my spotlight. I was supposed to be the one fighting that witch, not her!"

The elder hummed and nodded thoughtfully, processing his words. "And how was Mira? Did she cope well with everything?"

"Oh yeah, she did great. As much as I hate it, she did manage to singlehandedly defeat the evil wizard."

He smiled proudly. "As expected from Mirajane."

Natsu grinned back, feeling proud as well despite his previous annoyance. "Of course! She's still awesome and super strong. I even daresay she's returned to her normal self."

Makarov frowned slightly. "Normal self?"

"Yeah, like the state she was before this whole… thing. But she's less hostile now, and is surprisingly much nicer," Natsu elaborated, remembering Mirajane's friendly smile and the warmth that emanated from it.

The guild master felt relaxed. After all, she had been acting a little out of character ever since her sister passed away, and given this, it was only normal for a parent to be worried about their kid. He was surprised when the news traveled that she was doing a job request with Natsu Dragneel of all people, and was a bit hesitant at first considering her conditions, and the boy was way too reckless to play a responsible chaperone in a job. He would be lying if he said he hadn't been antsy these couple of days. However, he also had to keep reminding himself that Mirajane Strauss was not a frail child. She was a strong girl, for god's sake, an S-Class wizard at that. She did not need to be watched over constantly like a toddler.

With a little amount of trust he had in Natsu and putting more faith in Mirajane's natural strength and talent as a wizard, he reluctantly let them go. Hearing from the boy himself that Mirajane did well sure calmed down his nerves.

"Well, that's certainly relieving. I'm glad she's feeling much better now." Makarov hopped off the chair, and started walking away with his arms folded behind his back. "Do tell her if she ever need me, feel free to visit me in the office."

"Aye sir!" Natsu saluted, mimicking his partner. Watching the old man's retreating form, he briefly contemplated seeking the answer of his personal issues to him. Being an old man he was, surely he could give Natsu some words of wisdom or something, and the guild was still empty, it was the perfect opportunity.

He was about to call out to him when another voice preceded his. "Natsu? That's very unlike you to come to the guild so early."

"E—Erza!" He almost jumped, slightly hating himself for doing that whenever the redhead talked to him. Watching her walked toward him, he scratched the back of his head, immediately running his head to work to find the right reply. "Uh…yeah, I—uh, just happen to wake up early and decided to come straight to the guild."

As he heard Makarov closed the door to his office, the perfect chance he once had went away with him. He scowled in annoyance. Damn Erza for screwing up his odds and chances.

The older girl raised her eyebrow in mild surprise. "Really? That's good for a change." A happy smile soon graced her lips as a bright idea occurred to her, which made Natsu mentally cringed at the bad feeling that was suddenly tugging at his chest. "I just remember that I haven't had my daily dose of strawberry cake, and now that you're here, I have a perfect company to enjoy it."

He blinked several times. "Wait, what?"

Before he could protest, the famous Titania already grabbed his arm, completely catching him off guard. "Don't worry, Natsu. I know just the perfect place that sells the best desserts you'll ever taste." She smiled reassuringly to him, which had the opposite effect to the dragon slayer, and started—literally—dragging him out to her favorite café just two blocks away from the guild. They were quickly catching attention of the few passerby on the street.

"B—But, I didn't agree to this!" he squeaked, trying to free himself from the iron grip only to find that the redhead easily overpowered him.

"Hush, now. We're almost there."

There was no point in fighting back anymore, Natsu groaned as he realized this. He inwardly threw every curses in his dictionary to whatever deity was watching him and laughing at him right now. He could do nothing but merely let his languid limbs being dragged away, because surely, he of all people, should know better than to defy the ever-so-fearsome Titania of Fairy Tail.

Given his current misfortune, he failed to notice a pair of amused eyes watching the scenario unfolded, snickering under the cover of his small blue paws before eventually closing his eyes again and resumed his interrupted slumber. This time with a content smile gracing his lips. Karma was a bitch, but at least it was definitely on his favor today.

When Mirajane arrived, the guild was already filled with more faces. She could see Gray ducking under the tables, seemingly in his daily search of his missing garments with Cana sitting on top of it, laughing loudly at the poor boy, face flushed and positively drunk already. Laki and a few other mages—whose name she never bothered to remember—were circling them and merely sighed or shook their head at the sight. She also spotted Reedus, engrossed with his painting as usual, and Levy sitting at the very far end of the room, taking her time to read peacefully, something she found amazing considering the rowdy people surrounding her.

Mirajane chose a seat of her own and plopped down on it. She looked around the guild once more, taking notice of the lack of a certain dragon slayer's presence, and sighed. It wasn't really surprising though, she came here pretty early. Even her brother hadn't even showed up.

"Heeeey girl! Mind if I sit here?" Cana had suddenly appeared in front of her, grinning and holding four bottles of beer, two in each hand.

Mirajane was a bit surprised and was struggling to find her voice. After all, nobody except Natsu and her siblings had ever approached her so casually like that. Maybe people were generally too scared at her to do so, she concluded. "Uh…not at all," she replied, flashing her an awkward smile. If she wanted to be more social, she realized she might need to improve her skill.

Cana sat down next to her, placing the bottles on the table. She took one to hold during the upcoming conversation and flipped her brown hair behind her shoulder before resting her chin on her palm. "So Mira, how was the job with Natsu?"

The Demon's eyebrows rose in surprise. "How did you know about that?"

The brunette rolled her eyes. "Please, everybody knows it. We saw that little scene where he practically dragged you across the hall to the request board. Everyone was talking about it for days while you two were out on your fun little escapades. It's gotten bad enough that your brother actually flipped in front of the entire guild. Well, I'm not so surprised though. He keeps denying the obvious, and he's bound to get tired of it."

Her cheeks felt hot all of a sudden. Was their relationship really drawing that much of attention? There wasn't even anything going on between them! What could they possibly be gossiping about? And poor Elfman… He must be upset with all the gossip circulating around him, and he probably started to question his own belief. She made a mental note to have a little talk to him some time later to straighten things up and hopefully calm him down.

She felt her arms being nudged by the drunken brunette, her brown eyebrows wriggling suggestively. "So how was it? Come on, spill! I want to know everything, the juicier the better."

Before Mirajane could open her mouth, though, Cana continued, "I must say, he'd grown some killer abs. He must've gone through some serious workouts this past year. I can only imagine how those strong muscles feel under my hands..." She stopped her momentary fantasy as she realized Mirajane was avoiding her eyes and balling her fists firmly. She quirked an amused eyebrow, and chuckled, waving her hand in dismissal. "Oh no, no, no, he's all yours. I'm not interested in him. Any property of yours isn't something I'm keen on trespassing. I'm just simply appreciating God's work of art."

Mirajane was still figuring out how to respond the brunette when she bombarded her with another questions. "But seriously, what do you think about him? At least you agree with me on this one, right? You can't deny the fact that he's so much hotter now."

She chose to ignore the last two sentences, instead replying to the first one, choosing her words carefully, "He's… a very good friend."

Cana's shoulder sagged visibly in disappointment. "Oh, come on Mira! You know that's not what I want to hear. Give me a better answer! At least admit that he's hot and I'll let you slide."

"He's my best friend. I don't see him that way," Mirajane stressed. She tried hard to hide it but she could no longer deny the fact that she was getting on her nerves.

"Best friend, huh?" the brunette repeated in consideration, as if tasting the words in her mouth, before shaking her head sternly. "Nope, that doesn't sound right." She then swung the bottle casually, being a regular drinker she was, and took a swig out of it.

Mirajane frowned. "Why would you think so?"

Cana wiped her mouth hastily. "Duh, because it's obvious there's something going on between you two. We're not dumb, we all can see it, you know."

"But I swear, there's nothing—"

She cut her off with a mock sigh and scoffed, "Like brother, like sister. What is it with you two, seriously? I can understand Elfman, but you? You're the second player in this game, you should've known better than the rest of us. Just step out of your shell already, no one's judging you."

Mirajane was starting to lose her temper from trying to win this trivial argument. She was supposed to be good at this. She'd successfully won countless of arguments and bickers against her guildmates without having to put much effort into it. Throwing instant comebacks and ruthlessly putting people in place was her forte. At least, it used to. And now she couldn't even prove the brunette wrong, much less putting her in place. Where was that skill when she needed it the most?

She blew an exasperated breath. "How many times do I have tell you, Cana? We're friends. Whatever you or other people see between us are simply delusions."

But Cana kept pushing her button, "And how many times do I have to tell you not to deny the obvious? Save your breath for something else that matters more, like telling me how your job was. I'm sure you guys had some fun. Where's the juicy details?"

Mirajane's face flushed from an equal mixture of anger and embarrassment. "We did not do anything."

The sight only fueled in the brunette's suspicion. She smirked in satisfaction. "You can deny all you want Mira, but your face can never lie. Everything is clearly written all over you. Did you ever realize you're such a bad liar?"

"Shut up," Mirajane bit out dangerously. Her voice was strained from trying to hold the anger that was bubbling up inside.

Cana noticed this, but stayed firm. She knew she was playing a dangerous game. If this happened a few months ago she would have immediately ran for her life. She was only brave enough to do this because she knew Mirajane had changed somehow—and she knew Erza wasn't there to scold her either. Although it didn't stop the sweat from suddenly trickling across her forehead and her grip on the bottle tightened.

"What's the matter, Mira? Afraid that I could see through you?" she provoked, careful to keep her tone steady and fearless, while inside, she was anything but that.

When she didn't get any response, she pressed on, "Why would you even bother hide it? You don't need to be ashamed or an—"

"I said shut the fuck up!"

Silence suddenly fell upon the guild. Mirajane could feel numerous eyes watching them now, even Reedus had stopped painting. Her body suddenly became rigid, surprised at her own outburst, while Cana stared wide-eyed at her, looking equally surprised and tense. She stood abruptly and stormed off the guild, leaving everyone staring at her back in surprise. Cana didn't move from her seat. She was still too caught up in shock of the sudden outburst. After a while of collecting herself, however, the surprised look on her face turned into one of sheer amusement.

"Well, that's interesting," she murmured to herself, smiling slyly.

"You've gone too far, Cana," Levy said, suddenly appearing beside her and shaking her head in disapproval. Her hand holding the book which she had stopped reading some time ago close to her chest. "You're lucky you've gotten away with a mere shout to your face." She'd heard enough to figure out that the brunette was just trying to satisfy her own—or rather, everyone's—curiosity by testing out Mirajane's reaction to their speculations. As she predicted, Mirajane didn't take it well. It couldn't be helped though. Mirajane might be different now but that doesn't mean she would suddenly become transparent. She gave kudos to Cana for bravery though.

"That's the point. I knew she wouldn't do anything beyond that," she said, glancing at the petite girl. Now that her body had relaxed once again, she adjusted her position on the chair into a more comfortable one.

Levy sighed. "We can never be too sure, though. Just because she's nicer now doesn't mean she won't behead you the next time she sees you."

Cana shrugged coolly. The slight possibility hardly even made her flinch now. "It was worth it," she simply replied, before taking another swig of her beer.

Mirajane found herself sitting crouch-styled on the ground of South Gate Park now, watching a few kids playing soccer on the vast field. An outsider would think that she was too engrossed with the game to notice anything else around her. But if you take a better look, you will realize that she barely even paid any attention to it. Her gaze might be directed toward the kids, but her mind was in an entirely different zone. Inside, her brain was busy recounting the previous event and reflecting on her reaction to it. She tightened her hold around her legs and rested her chin on her knees.

It was common knowledge that the only friend she had aside of her siblings was Natsu, and obviously, this was the first time anyone had ever pushed her out of her comfort zone, and she wondered if she was overreacting. She wanted to befriend her guildmates, she really did, but at the same time, she wasn't ready for the unexpected interrogation and to be bombarded with numerous personal questions that wasn't supposed to be anyone else's business but her only. Why would they even stick their nose to her personal matters? Is that how people befriend each other these days? By prying into other people's life?

She released a heavy sigh. So much for trying to be more social.

This was only her first attempt and she had already failed. Keeping her own words proved to be more challenging than not. And it'd only been like what, less than two hours since she made that decision? There were several things that she took seriously in her life, pride being one of the foremost, and she'd be damned if she ever find herself backing out of her own promise. The thought itself was like a knife twisting in her stomach. Honestly, she'd rather be forced to swallow a jug full of needles than do that. But on the other hand, having other people poke at her personal business wasn't something she keen on either. God forbid her letting herself relent to such treatment. She wasn't some kind of an animal at the zoo, she didn't live for the sole purpose of some sort of freaking entertainment for everyone. The thought made her blood boil, and for a moment, all she could see was red. Her nails unconsciously digging into the skin of her thighs, but before she could snap, her common sense quickly regain control over her emotions. The red clouds that were fogging her mind and vision before slowly dissipated as she regain consciousness. She took a deep breath and released them to calm her nerves.

This is so stupid, she grumbled inwardly. But once she gave it a second thought, she came to realize she was probably just—as much as she was embarrassed to admit—a big dork. She was simply too socially awkward to make friends through the normal and proper approach. No wonder she resorted to harass them, because what's the better façade to hide her true self other than being the bully? She figured it didn't make any difference to be liked or feared, at least people noticed her, and she had people whom she could call her friends. Although, when she thought about it now, how can you call someone who feared you your friends?

This was undoubtedly a major blow to her ego, and she had never been brave enough to admit it even to herself. She had fallen too deep into denial, too ashamed to acknowledge that one crucial fact about herself that she'd become somebody else. But now, she won't let herself be ashamed anymore. She would try to accept that title proudly and embrace it. If there were two things she hated it would be cowards and the other would be hypocrites. She realized she was walking a dangerously thin line in between both categories, and she hated herself even more for that. She'd die first before letting herself fall completely into either—or worse, both—category.

Even then, remembering her true self still didn't resolve her current issue at hand. She closed her eyes and slowly massaged her temple. Her head was starting to pound from thinking too much. Maybe it was best to do this step by step. There's a process for everything. At least she knew she already had a good start.

When she opened her eyes again, she realized the spot she had been staring at for the past time was already empty now. The kids that were playing soccer earlier had been gone for god knows how long. Judging by the high position of the sun now, it had already reached midday. Evidently, she spent more time sorting out her mind than she had anticipated.

Mirajane got up on her feet, dusted her backside off any possible dirt, and left the park. Clearly, she was no longer in the mood to go back to the guild, much less meeting Cana or anyone, really. Instead, she turned and took the path toward her house. Luckily, she'd thoughtfully taken the precaution of making two house keys—one being Elfman's and the other one being hers—so she had no trouble getting in. She stopped dead on her track as soon as she entered her living room.

There was a figure lying comfortably across the coach, and the unmistakable pink locks he sported gave her a perfect idea of who he was. Mirajane didn't even know what to feel when she saw him again after last night. She supposed she should somehow feel embarrassed with her rather bold action, but surprisingly, she didn't. If anything, she was actually happy to see him again, and glad that he looked equally calm and fine as well.

"How did you get in here?" she asked, her voice didn't hold any surprise, as she walked in further. Being Natsu's friend for years she had learned to expect the unexpected at any times, making her almost immune to any of his unusual antics. There was one time when she came home to find Natsu and Happy were engaged in a heated argument atop her rooftop. She didn't think they managed to sort out the problem though, because the argument ended with Natsu slipping off the roof before he could give any comeback, thus making Happy came out victorious.

From his position, Natsu cracked his previously closed eyes open, and grinned at her. "Hey Mira! You left your bedroom window unlocked so I thought I should let myself in," he replied casually as if it was a perfectly normal thing to do.

Mirajane crossed her arms against her chest and arched a perfect eyebrow, though her eyes were dancing in mirth. "You broke into my house through my bedroom window? What else, you're going to start stuffing my jewelry now?"

He sat up from his position and laughed. "Not jewelry. But I'll probably raid your fridge later."

She rolled her eyes sarcastically. "Knock yourself out." Just then, she realized something amiss. "Where's Happy?"

Natsu shrugged indifferently. "Still at the guild. Apparently, he's giving me the silent treatment."

Mirajane's lips curled up in amusement and she walked over to sit on one of the arm chairs. "Now what is it about this time?"

Natsu snorted in annoyance. "The usual. He blamed me for something I didn't even do. I swear to god, he's more dramatic than a hormonal teenage girl sometimes."

"You mean like me?" Mirajane prodded, wanting to sound irritated yet her face was all glee.

"Psh, of course not. You're like the coolest girl I've ever met."

She didn't know how he did it, but those simple words made a huge impact of brightening her day, and she found herself unable to hide her grin.

"You didn't come to the guild today," he pointed softly. It was more of a statement than a question.

"Miss me already?" Mirajane teased, placing her elbow on the armrest and rested her chin on her palm.

There was a momentary pause before he voiced his answer which Mirajane took note of. "I'm just wondering you know."

She hummed and raised a teasing eyebrow, playfully doubting his answer, but she replied anyway, "Actually, I did come. I just decided to be back early."

"Did something happen?"

Nothing worth your attention, she thought to herself. She decided to stick to the truth but didn't delve too much. "Not much. Just… Cana being Cana. She nagged me way too much and I just need a fresh air."

Lucky for her, he didn't try to. He snickered in agreement, "Tell me about it. She can be a little overwhelming sometimes. Especially when she's drunk, which is all the time. It's probably your first time to fall for her victim, right?" When she nodded, he continued, "It's annoying, but you'll get used to it."

Natsu chose that time to stand up, pulling his arms upward to stretch. Mirajane couldn't help but run her eyes appreciatively along his firm torso. How come she never realized the guy had a really nice body? More importantly, where did that thought come from? She bit her lip and forced herself to avert her eyes elsewhere. Damn it. She cursed Cana for giving her ideas and messing with her head.

She steadied herself before clearing her throat. "So, are you here to demand your personalized all-you-can-eat feast?" she said as she started walking to the kitchen.

Natsu grinned widely and followed her. "Hell yeah. I haven't had anything today so I'm famished."

Mirajane quirked an eyebrow. "You purposely starve yourself just so you can go all out, don't you?" She opened her fridge to take out the ingredients and was silently thankful that she always had plenty of food stocked in there, thus saving herself from the trouble of having to go to the market for this occasion.

Natsu just shrugged, refusing to confirm nor deny the statement. "Need a hand?" he offered instead.

The Demon smiled gratefully. In the past, she didn't trust any guy to help her in the kitchen, which was why she only ever allowed Lisanna around. But ever since her absence, Elfman always offered in her stead, which she refused the first several times. When he kept insisted though, she finally relented. Now, she found it rather helpful, and it was just simply nice to have someone to converse with in the kitchen. "It'll be nice if you could help me wash the vegetables and fishes."

"Sure," he replied easily, taking the said ingredients from her hands and moved toward the washing basin.

Mirajane returned to the fridge to fetch the rest of the ingredients, before setting them on the counter. She turned around and asked him, "Do you have any special request? Before I do anything."

Natsu craned his neck, looking at her sideways. "Well, I don't have anything in mind. It's up to you. I basically love anything you cook."

She smiled and nodded. "Alright. Just don't blame me if this suddenly turned into a vegan feast."

Natsu turned his body fully toward her and gaped in horror. "You wouldn't…"

Mirajane giggled in mirth. She could never get enough of his adorable naivety. "Of course I won't. Otherwise, I wouldn't tell you to clean the fishes now, would I?" She winked as she thrusted the frozen meat and chicken into his hands. "And I won't be handing you these either."

The dragon slayer held them stiffly, ignoring the stinging cold sensation on his skin. His body suddenly went rigid and he stared at her in pure disbelief. Holy shit, did Mira actually winked at me?

Mirajane, however, spared no second to pay attention to the pink haired anymore as she already returned to her station and started working. Natsu quickly snapped out of his trance and spun around as well. He ran the water to unfreeze the cold meat and chicken, smiling down at them. She really is different now.

They spend the next one and a half hour preparing the meal. By prepare it really only meant that Mirajane did all the cooking while Natsu hovering around her as she worked, occasionally taking a taste or two. They both decided that he was better off just watching from the sideline after he cut himself from trying to chop the carrots. By the time they finished, Elfman arrived with a questionably cheerful looking Happy in tow. Natsu had approached him and tried to talk to him again, and surprisingly, he acted as if their earlier fight never happened. It was weird, considering it usually took more time for his best friend to come around after declaring the silent treatment, but decided not to mull over it too much and just shrugged it off.

They ended up having a pleasant lunch together, albeit Mirajane having to constantly scold Happy for taking a rather huge portion of the fish since it was supposed to be Natsu's playday. Fortunately, she prepared just enough to satisfy both the cat and his partner. They talked and laughed about anything, mostly whatever that came from the dragon slayer's mouth. Mirajane watched and listened as he vigorously told them the stupid time when Happy stuck his head inside a round bowl from playing astronaut, and ended up having to sleep with it because Natsu refused to help him before then out of sheer amusement. She laughed wholeheartedly in the end, wondering to herself if she had ever been this happy before in her life.

Author's note: Hiya, it's been a while! *dodging knifes and bullets* Despite going MIA these past four months, I'm actually still alive and well. Hopefully this long chapter is enough to make up for the long wait. And no, I didn't put the disclaimer and flashback of the previous chapter just to make it look longer. I just feel bad that you probably have to go back to the previous chapter just to refresh your memory every time I updated, so yeah.

On the side note, I decided to change the genre back to Hurt/Comfort, if you haven't notice already, because I realized the storyline isn't depressing enough for a Tragedy. I hope I didn't disappoint anyone…

As usual, my love goes to every one of my readers. You guys are the only reason why I keep on continuing this, despite the lengthy time it takes me to finish it. I'm really surprised to see that the numbers keep growing even long after the last update! You guys… *sniff* I'm honestly touched. Damn, I have the best readers.

Stay awesome guys!