Go on a Date

Amid the train's "Wooooo" whistle, they returned to Magnolia. The group went back to the guild to report on the mission.

"Hmm... Bloodhand Samir. I heard an S-Class mage from another guild fell to him a few years ago. The fact that you came back safely is more important than anything." Makarov was somewhat relieved after hearing their report. He quietly calculated, Fairy Tail's new generation is growing strong. Mira, Erza, Laxus, and Mystogan are already S-Class. Natsu, Gray, Cana, and the others are gradually becoming able to stand on their own.

Oh, right, and Ed. It feels like he could practically take the S-Class Trial already, but he seems to have completed a few too few jobs. I should have him pick up the pace later.

"All right, you just got back, and it sounds like the battle was pretty tough. Hurry home and get some rest." Makarov waved them away, signaling that they could leave.

Ed and the others left the guild. "Are you going straight home to rest? Want to take a walk around first?" Ed pressed his advantage and invited Mira.

"Now?" Mira hesitated. Seeing this, Lisanna immediately dragged Elfman away, calling out, "It's fine, Elfman and I will head home to tidy up first. Mira, you can handle buying the ingredients for dinner~ Oh, and Ed, do you want to come over for dinner tonight?"

"Can I?!" Ed's eyes instantly lit up.

"Can what?! Don't get carried away!" Mira was still a little shy. She turned and headed toward the shops, while Ed waved to Lisanna and quickly followed Mira.

"Does Lisanna cook at your house, or do you?" Ed asked curiously. "We take turns. Is there a problem with that?" Mira shot him a glare.

"Then I want to visit when it's your turn to cook!" Ed enthusiastically proposed.

"What are you trying to do?" Mira asked, puzzled.

"What else? I just want to know more about you, like your cooking skills. Oh, you probably change into casual clothes at home too, right? I really want to see..." As Ed spoke, a strange smile spread across his face.

"Go die, pervert!" Mira stomped on Ed's toes in embarrassment and anger, then ground her heel down twice. "Hmph!"

Mira marched ahead in a huff, while Ed limped after her with a pained grimace.

They soon arrived at the shop, and Mira began picking out ingredients for dinner. "This broccoli looks nice... Hmm, let's get a few potatoes... Eggs, eggs... This fish looks pretty good too..."

Watching Mira choose ingredients, Ed spoke in a pitiful voice. "If possible... I'd like some beef..."

"Who cares what you want to eat?! And if you want something, buy it and cook it yourself!" Mira looked disgusted, but she still picked out a piece of beef and put it in the basket.

"Thank you so much, Mira!" Ed attacked with starry eyes. Mira's face reddened again. "D-Don't look at me like that! I didn't buy it for you. I just suddenly felt like buying some, that's all!"

"Oh my, little Mira is buying ingredients with her boyfriend? You two look so close~" An older woman suddenly appeared beside them and spoke to Mira.

"W-What boyfriend?! He isn't one yet!" Mira turned as red as a boiling teapot, practically steaming.

"Oh! Not yet~" The woman wore an expression that said she had seen through everything. Turning to Ed, she said, "Young man, you still need to work harder~"

"Yes! Understood!" Ed replied at attention.

"What exactly were you agreeing to?!" After the woman's supposedly concerned but actually gossip-filled chatter, Mira looked resentfully at the true culprit.

"Ahaha~ Don't worry about little details like that~" Ed said casually.

"This concerns one of the biggest matters in my life, you know?! Forget it, let's just pay and go home." Mira felt exhausted.

"Oh, then I'll walk you home." Ed naturally took on the role of her knightly escort.

"ε=(´ο｀*))) Sigh... Fine, fine, let's go..." Mira helplessly led Ed toward her house. Before long, they arrived at Mira's front door.

"This is my house. So? Are you still going to keep following me?" Mira eyed someone who clearly had no self-awareness and questioned him.

"Look, Mira, isn't there an old saying..." Ed said awkwardly.

"I'm listening." Mira wore an expression that said, Let's see what kind of nonsense you come up with.

"As the saying goes, since we're already here, right?" Ed tried to persuade her. "I've already come all this way. Can you really bear to make me turn around and go back?"

"I really do want to make you go straight back. Fine, come in. You contributed quite a bit during the mission, so I'll treat you once today." Mira sighed, opened the door, and led Ed inside.

"I'm home," Mira called into the house.

"Welcome back." "Welcome home, Mira." Those were the replies from her two family members.

Then Lisanna spotted Ed following Mira through the door. "Oh! Ed, Mira actually brought you home already? Have things progressed that quickly between you two?"

Mira expressionlessly walked up to Lisanna and chopped her on the head with her hand. "I don't recall teaching you to tease your own sister for no reason."

"Ugh..." Lisanna clutched her head with teary eyes and looked at Mira pitifully.

Mira was still completely at the mercy of her little sister. "All right, all right, come help me in the kitchen. Ed, just sit wherever you like for a while." Mira dragged Lisanna into the kitchen to prepare dinner.

"Need any help? I'm not bragging, but I'm pretty good at cooking~" Ed tried to follow, but Mira immediately chased him back. "A guest should act like a guest. Sit tight. We'll call you when dinner's ready."

Ed could only obediently sit in the living room and make small talk with Elfman. "Come to think of it, you three siblings joined Fairy Tail when you were very young, right?"

"Yes. When we were little, Mira awakened Take Over Magic by accident while trying to drive away a demon causing trouble at the church. She took in that demon's soul, but the local residents instead saw her as a symbol of demons. So she was forced to leave town with Lisanna and me. We traveled through many places until we came to Fairy Tail, where Chairman Makarov told us that Mira had awakened magic."

As Elfman spoke, his emotions gradually grew more intense. "My sister originally hated that power. Because of it, we were driven out of town, so at first, she planned to leave Lisanna and me in Fairy Tail and depart from the guild herself."

"That does sound like Mira's style, taking every problem onto herself," Ed said after thinking it over.

"So, to encourage her, Lisanna and I both learned Take Over Magic. After all, a family should use the same kind of magic!" As Elfman spoke, he suddenly thought of something. "So, Ed, if you really want to be with my sister, make sure you never use any excuse to run away together!"

"Yeah! Yeah?... Huh?" Ed looked utterly baffled.