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On Christmas Eve, two S-Class wizards walked into a bar. Not at the same time, but from the same guild. About the same age, about the same power. Or, so rumors said. None had seen the two compare their strength, and considering guild bonds could be stronger than blood, it was likely they never would.Not until tonight.In a surprising turn of innocuous behavior, Laxus Dreyer was seated at the bar with a few empty mugs of ale, keeping to himself. Speaking with no one, engaging in no conversation, not even eavesdropping. Anyone who got close could hear the music blasting from his lacrima-headset. He must have been a regular, because the bartender knew what to serve with only a meager gesture of coins sliding across the worn surface of the bar top.It was the newcomer who stirred the peace. Shielded in a dark, thick cloak, shadows casted their face anonymous. Snow prickled the suede of their shoulders and hood. The only distinct feature was the sound of heels, so likely a woman, one could assume.She stood in the doorway, completely still. Analyzing the clientele of this rustic, out-of-the-way pub. Then she moved, made a beeline towards the bulky blond in the corner, minding his own business.Nails dug into his shoulder and drew him away from his tunes. The spiked pods around his ears fell to his collarbone as he glared up at the mysterious figure. The jostling of her assault stirred her hood off, revealing a face he was certainly not expecting to find in a place like this.“Mirajane…?”Maybe a decade ago when she used to wear leather and spikes, her pout would be a little more sinister. Instead, she only looked like an irritated girl. “You’re too close to the guild.”Astonished, Laxus’s lips remained parted. “I’m just havin’ a drink.”“And members of Fairy Tail have noticed you in the vicinity. You need to leave.”Gray eyes took on a challenging light. “Gramps hired you as his guard dog?”Her free palm smashed down on the bar beside him. A few patrons left, sensing the tension in the air. “I’m acting on my own accord to keep the guild safe. People are scared, and around this time of the year, we’re supposed to feel safe. Like a family.”“You’re really gonna stand here and bitch at me until I pack up my shit and leave, huh?” He raised one of his earbuds back to his ear. “Let me finish my drink, at least.”“Laxus, go. Now.”With an annoyed scowl, the lightning mage swirled his drink around. “You’ve got no bite to your bark anymore, Mira. You don’t scare me.”Mirajane thudded her elbow against the counter to close the distance between them. Laxus’s gaze might have dipped to line of her cleavage in his frame of view, but he didn’t linger, and that almost pissed her off more. “You haven’t spoken with Freed yet, then.”Now he just looked confused. “What’s he got to do with this?”The dainty, pale arm on the countertop shifted to something grotesque, scaly, and clawed. “I almost took his life. But I’ve got more control than that, more control than you. I would never turn my back on family.”He seemed impressed with her display, but her declaration had him glaring again. “You’ve made your point.”Slowly, Mirajane raised, and her arm returned to its true form. She said nothing. Laxus didn’t budge. A standstill hung over them until Laxus reached into his back pocket to pay for his last drink.“I’m surprised it’s you of all people, I guess,” he muttered to himself, flipping through bills and coins. “Figured you’d be the type to stay home with your brother. It’s late, yeah? Christmas Eve?” When she didn’t reply, he set the payment on the table and turned to face her squarely, arms folded. She towered over him from here, just staring with that dark, annoyed expression he admittedly loved. “Come to think of it, Elfman always spent his holiday at the guild, and you’re only there for a handful of hours, at most.”“I’m surprised you know any of this, considering you hardly ever spent time with the guild to begin with.”“Well, I guess that’s something we’ve got in common.” He leaned against the counter when he stood, and fleetingly, Mira wondered if he was still dealing with some old injuries. “I don’t do holidays. Neither do you.”Bright blue eyes flickered over him. “What makes you think that?”Laxus seemed surprised she still wanted to engage with him at this point. “Guild holidays are the same shit, different season. I guess I can’t speak for you, but they’re too mushy for me. I was never like the rest of those kids. Just my father’s protégé, and my grandfather’s pity project afterwards. It’s just salt in a wound, hearing them talk about family and love and all that bullshit I never had when I was their age.”As he brushed past her, Mira stared at his empty seat, then turned around and followed him towards the door. “Laxus, wait. Where are you going?”“I’m not going to the guild,” he said in a fully annoyed tone. “I’m pissing off. You don’t wanna see me again, I get it. I’m gone.”“I—I do want to see you again,” she choked out. “I heard you were here and I—”Laxus paused in the doorway, the blizzard outside roaring on behind him as he glanced over his shoulder at the woman he knew since they were kids. The orphan who showed up without any parents, protecting two sick little siblings, convinced she wasn’t even human with that curse in her veins.“I just wanted to see you again.” Her light voice sounded even frailer than usual. “You’re…a demon and a bastard but, you were one of the first people who ever said anything nice to me.” He could see her lower lip quiver. “Right now, the guild is afraid of you, and they did ask me to run you off but, I’m not afraid of you. I know you. You were loved in that guild, even if it didn’t feel that way.”For a long while, Laxus chewed over her words, letting the cold winds creep in and wrap around them. “What’s your game here, Mira?”“I don’t want you to be alone. I know what it’s like to try to celebrate a holiday without the people you love and…” Mira collected herself with a firm sigh. “It cleared up to me a few days after your exile. It doesn’t make any sense. You hurt us, you hurt all of us, but that hurt, it had to come from somewhere. You’re not a bad man. You’re not like—” Laxus turned and approached, looming over her with a warning in his eyes, and Mira cleared her throat. “You may not be part of the guild anymore, but you’re still close to my heart. You’re not the monster the guild makes you out to be.” A small, self-depreciative smile appeared on her pretty face. “Trust me. As a demon, I know monsters.”She could feel his gaze rove over her again. “What are your plans tonight?”A little heat flushed to her face. “I—I don’t know…”“You want to come back to my place?”“O-Oh…how forward…” Mirajane gulped down the shift in tone.“Don’t play coy, she-devil.” Laxus smirked and how Mira longed to see that gorgeous expression again. “You said you didn’t want me to be alone tonight. Whether that just means drinks or something more…I accept. Let’s go.”Laxus’s cabin was far-out and discreet, which didn’t entirely suit him, but Mirajane figured it was the best he could do, given the circumstances. This all felt temporary, anyway. Maybe he could sense it, too.After a few drinks, he lit the fireplace to keep the home warm, but the body heat between them was more than enough to have them sweating. He thrust into her and her nails raked across the smooth, slick skin of his back, fueling the fire in his gut.“…must be the luckiest man alive…” he huffed in her ear through a giddy grin, “…fucking Mirajane Strauss…”A squeak slipped from her throat as he hooked his hand under the small of her back to pull her close on the next grind, doubling the friction between them. Her fingertips trailed over the tattoos of his chest, longing to ingrain them into her memory with the rest of this night. “K-Keep this up and it certainly won’t be the last time…”When he felt her teeth against the side of his neck, he closed his eyes with a satisfied hum. “I wanna fuck you in Satan Soul one day…”She felt herself clench around him, felt his body flinch in response. “Oh, Laxus…I would love that…”“You’re just…you’re so beautiful…I know you know it but…goddamn…I love that side of you…” He started to sputter random charms of affection as he neared his end, palming over her generous breasts, groping at her ass. “R-Remember when we played…spin the bottle?”His sudden question had her brow furrowing. “That was years ago, Laxus…”“Do you remember?”“I think so? I was…I was drunk, I—I can’t be sure.”“We kissed. Do you remember?” He raised up for a moment and she nearly held her breath from the pause in rhythm, anticipation eating at her. “You’ve gotta remember that.”Her eyes brightened. “We kissed. Yes. Yes, I remember, it, it was my first kiss…”“Mine too.” He glanced over her trembling body. “I wanted to have my way with you right then and there.”“How long have we been holding out on each other?”“I don’t know.” His breath was near scalding over her shoulder as he pounded into her a few more times, until she could swear she felt every hair on her body stand up on edge. “I gotta pull out…you wanna…?”“Please, please do it again, one more time, please…”For only a second, her body felt hollow and cold as his weight shifted off her, his cock sliding away. His left hand held it firm, staved off his orgasm for just another second more. His right hand drew between her legs, hooking two fingers within her until he found that spot that made her gasp.And then, a jolt.The sensation set her alight, a climax like no other. Dozens of tiny shockwaves directed right to her most sensitive region, flooding her with unadulterated pleasure. In the drowse of her climax, she could feel a warm spray from the man above, leaking over her stomach and thighs, trailing over her guild mark.For a moment then, all that could be heard was panting and the creaking of the mattress when Laxus collapsed beside her. Then Mirajane started giggling to herself, the back of her hand over her mouth.“What?” Laxus roused, “what’s so funny?”“I thought of a terrible joke.”“Oh yeah?”“…they ought to call you a demon slayer, rather than a dragon slayer…I’m feeling quite slain…”Laxus coughed up a laugh and faced the ceiling with her. “Yeah, that’s terrible.”“I’m not a comedian.”“Thankfully.”After a playful swat, Laxus turned and sat up on the edge of the bed. Mirajane remained where she lay. “Thanks,” he said eventually, “for finding me.”“Thank you for letting me in,” she replied in a softer, more serious tone. “I couldn’t get you off my mind, so to say this is cathartic would be an understatement.”“It’s…it was nice, yeah.”“Do you feel any better?”“I guess.”Another pause. Mirajane sat up, too. “Will this be your first Christmas without Makarov?”“Yeah.”Drawing her lips together tightly, Mira let her eyes wander towards his dresser aimlessly. “Did you want me to stay tomorrow, too?”Laxus swatted a hand. “Elfman doesn’t deserve to suffer a holiday without his family because I fucked up. It’s fine.”“I’m sure if I told him—”“Don’t,” Laxus cut in firmly, glancing over his shoulder with those powerful, stormy eyes. “Don’t tell anyone about this, about me, or where I am. If word gets out about any of this, I’m positive Gramps will take it the wrong way. He’ll assume I assaulted you or some shit.”Mira’s brow flew to her hairline. “Why would he think that? It’s not like I’m going to show up to the guild screaming and crying. I had a nice time tonight, Laxus, truly.”“I get that, but…” Laxus shook his head. “I think Gramps is afraid I’m turning into my dad.”Mirajane’s shoulders drooped. “I don’t think that’s the case at all.”“Well…better to play it safe,” he mumbled. “Your best bet is heading out tomorrow morning and telling everyone I’m long gone.”The mattress shook when Mira thumped backwards and gave in. “I really hope he’ll forgive you someday.”“Well, he doesn’t have to. I did some terrible things to him and his family. It’s understandable.”“I’m not sure it’s worth beating yourself up about it, either.”“Yeah, yeah, yeah.”
He stood and ruffled his hair. “I’m gonna go hose off. You’re uh, welcome to the bathroom afterwards, I guess.”“Afterwards?” she questioned. “Am I allowed to join you instead?”Laxus’s shower was not designed for two people, let alone one person the size of him, but the pair were practically plastered onto each other, lips locked, so it hardly mattered. Mirajane held his face dearly and Laxus stared into her eyes with more black in his gaze than gray and she realized they had fallen deeply.“I’ve got to know…” Her thumb traced over the bottom of the scar on his cheek. “What is this from?”Laxus reached for her hand and drew it away, towards his chest. “That was…what got my dad exiled.”“He cut you?”“He hired a surgeon to implant a lacrima in my brain.”Mirajane stared in disbelief. Waiting for him to crack, hoping for it to be some weird, dark joke. Laxus’s expression was unwavering.“He was concerned if it was located anywhere else in my body, someone could simply cut me open and rip it out. But it was safe in my skull.”Silently, Mira rested her head against his chest. Laxus stroked her smooth, wet hair and shifted awkwardly.“I don’t really tell anyone about it.”“Does it hurt?” she asked softly.“No, actually. Not at all. Surgeon did a good job, all things aside. They thought I’d end up partially blind but, surprisingly, I’ve got twenty-twenty vision.”Another small spell of silence. “I know he’s your father, but I hope he rots in hell.”“You and me both. I’m not sitting on my ass and doing nothing about it, though. This exile gave me a kick in the right direction. I’ve been keeping my eye on Raven Tail.”“Please be careful.”“Yes ma’am.”With a breathy laugh, Mira reached up on her toes to kiss him again, delighted when he smiled against her lips. “I’ll be back,” she whispered. “I promise.”“I look forward to it, she-devil. Maybe we can kick some Raven Tail ass together.”“I would love that more than anything else…”