Hide and Seek

"That's a total lie."

"Is not," Laxus yawned as he fought to keep his eyes open, just to argue with his girlfriend. She was getting ready to head down to her early shift at the guild, but he wouldn't be truly getting up for a few more hours. Noon at least. "I can smell you, babe, from miles away."

"So if I, parse…hid, you could find me?

"Mmmhmm."

"Even if I crossed water?"

"I ain't a fucking bloodhound, Mirajane. I'm smart enough to cross the river and start smelling around for you there. I won't lose the scent." He patted his chest sleepily. "Your scent, babe? Got that one memorized."

"What do I smell like?"

"Like…you."

She was going around his room, trying to find enough articles of clothing to put together an outfit. That was the problem with living out of his place and hers; she never could manage to have all the clothes she needed in one place. Once she even had to go into work wearing one of his shirts, which was cute in theory, but not in practice. It was baggy in all the wrong places and just didn't match her form at all. Laxus got a good kick out of it, though he did say he would rather see her in tighter clothing, if only for her boobs.

He was a keeper.

"But what do I-"

"I can't explain it, Mira," he groaned. "I just know it, okay? I could probably track you across all of Fiore."

"Well, we don't have time for that, but I do wanna put your little skill to the test."

Grunt.

"What if I were…another person?"

"What do you mean?"

Before he knew it, there was another Laxus standing in his room, though his eyes were blue as the sea and he was standing in a rather feminine way.

"So what?" Laxus asked, glancing at his clone. "You wanna transform into someone and see if I can still find you?"

"It'd be the only way to prove it was real and not just luck," he heard his own voice mimicked back to him.

Another grunt. "Fine. Be someone else when I get to the guild today, huh? I'll find you immediately."

"Okay." When she went over to kiss him still transformed as him though, he shoved her away. "Laxus-"

"Not cool, Mirajane."

"What?" She giggled before taking a step back and returning to her normal state. "You sure are funny about things, Laxus."

Grunt.

That time when she kissed him, he let her, though he only pushed her away when she tried to hug him as well.

"Sleeping. Go."

So she finished getting ready before calling out to him not to forget the game. He only grunted before rolling over to go to sleep.

Please. Calling it a game was more than an overstatement. It was a flat out lie. He could smell Mira miles off. She was the closest he had ever been to another person in his entire life. Like he'd ever forget the smell of her.

The guild was actually kind of calm when Laxus walked in. Then he realized it was because Team Natsu wasn't around. Still, he didn't have time to enjoy the peace; he had a job to do.

The first thing he smelled was cooking chicken. That was due to his overly hungry stomach though and he suppressed the urge to eat something. Taking another sniff with his dragon sense, he picked up Mira's scent…no. Lisanna's. She was around, but Mira's…found it. It was feint, but it was there.

"Your sister got something to do today?" Laxus asked Lisanna as he approached the bar. "We were supposed to play a game."

"A game?" Lisanna was automatically getting him his usual concoction of liquor, but he shook his head.

"None for me." He tapped his nose. "Busy."

"What sort of game are the two of you playing?" She cocked her head to the side before giggling. "Or is it a naughty game?"

Reaching out, he poked her nose then and stared her dead in the eyes. Then he shook his head. Nope. Lisanna. Not Mira. Just like he thought. He wanted to double check though, as their scents were so similar.

"Nothing you wanna be involved in, kid," he told her before walking off. Like he said before, it was lingering. She had just been in the hall, but-

Maybe she went to the infirmary or the book room. The basement? Hmmm.

"Looking for something, boy?"

Glancing over, he saw his grandfather seated up on the counter. A quick sniff told him it indeed was the old man. Laxus only grunted making the man chuckle.

"Your girlfriend?"

Grunt.

"If she were here, it'd be hard not to spot her, as much as she talks. Must not be around."

Not wanting to get roped into a lecture or something, he quickly moved on from Makarov, heading towards the upstairs. Just then though the guildhall doors opened and he heard the most annoying voices of all time.

"This is all your fault, Natsu," his blonde mage girlfriend grumbled as they headed into the guild. "How could you lose Happy?"

"I'm sorry, Luce. I just-"

"He was supposed to be bringing me that package from the post office. Did you not think that maybe it would be a good idea for the two of you to stick together?"

Natsu hung his head as they headed over to a table to sit down. "Sorry. I guess I just forgot."

When they sat down though, Laxus knew for sure his nose wasn't off. Natsu did this thing where he tried to rub down the back of his pants before he took a seat. Which would have made sense, if he was wearing a dress and didn't want to get it crinkled. But he wasn't.

Going over to them, Laxus laid a hand on the pink hair mage's shoulder before leaning down and whispering, "Found you," in his ear. Lucy's eyes widened as the gesture, but about kneeled over and died at what happened next.

"I knew you could do it," Natsu exclaimed in a loud voice before jumping up from the table and throwing his arms around Laxus. She almost fainted when Natsu pressed a kiss to Laxus' lips, wrapping his arms around him.

"Mira." Laxus shoved Natsu away then, causing a giggle to escape his lips. "I told you. Not cool."

Then, before Lucy's very eyes, suddenly her boyfriend was gone and a very giggly she-demon was in his place. Everyone that had turned to look at the spectacle only rolled their eyes before turning away once more.

"Mirajane," Lucy said slowly, staring in shock. Then she was angry. "I thought you were Natsu!"

"Sorry, Lucy." Mira giggled as she moved to get back in Laxus' grasp. Glancing over her shoulder at the other woman, she said, "I had to keep the ruse up. I didn't think you'd be around today. I don't know where the real Natsu is."

"Wait." Laxus glanced at Lucy, as if interested. "You two didn't, like, mess around or anything while Mira was Natsu, did you? Because that would mean-"

Mira hit his chest. "Behave."

Pulling her head back down to rest against his chest, he said, "It was just a question."

"Now come here." Mira jumped back from him then before grasping her hand in his. "You hungry? Let me go make you something."

As they walked away, Lucy only glared at their backs before laying her head down. When would the real Natsu turn up then?

That took about another hour at which time Natsu and Happy showed up, with her package, fine, but smelling oddly of fish and the woods.

"Hey, Lucy," Natsu greeted as they sat the package down on the table. "Anything-"

'Where were you two?"

"Fish- I mean, getting your package. You know? Like you told us?" He went to kiss her cheek while Happy only rolled his eyes as he landed. Lucy never had to interrogate Natsu when she thought he had done wrong. The dope always just came out and admitted it.

"So anyways, anything go on while I was gone?" he asked as he sat down next to her, slinging an arm over her shoulder. "Gray show up? Wanting to fight me? Because-"

"Well," she began in a conversational tone. "Laxus kissed Natsu, if it's any interest to you."

"What? No kidding? That-" Then he paused and let his arm fall. "But hey, I'm Natsu!"

"I know," she said as she moved to begin opening her package. "But apparently, he and Mira play a game where she's you and they kiss."

"What?" Happy made a face. "Who would want to kiss you, Natsu? I mean, Lucy would, but that's only because no one wants to kiss her either."

"I don't see Carla jumping your bones either, cat," Lucy retorted with a frown.

"Hey!"

Natsu just sat there though, glancing at Lucy before up at Laxus. "You think…he's in love with me or something?"

Lucy only rolled her eyes. Then, figuring it'd be good pay back for Mira tricking her, Lucy said, "I dunno, Natsu, but I'd figure it out if I were you. Wouldn't want him mistaking the real you for Mira and kissing you, would you?"

"Na-ah," he said, shaking his head. "I mean, I only halfway like kissing you."

"What?"

He only winked at her before getting to his feet. "I'm gonna go settle this."

"Have at it," Lucy said, no longer concerned as she found her box contained exactly what she was waiting for; a load of books. "And send Levy this way if you see her."

"Yeah, yeah," he grumbled as he left Happy and Lucy behind and approached the bar. Laxus was leaning against it while Mira wiped it down, conversing happily to her boyfriend.

"-think that I should try it, but I dunno. I'm not big on asparagus, but I think if I cook it that way, maybe-"

"Hey, Mira, sorry to interrupt, but I need to have a word here with Laxus," Natsu cut the woman off who only frowned.

"Something wrong, Natsu?" she asked, cocking her head to the side. Laxus only glanced at him before going back to staring at Mira.

"Well, actually…Don't take this the wrong way, Laxus, but I'm not in love with you. So if you and Mirajane can just stop your freaky-deaky game where you use her to make out with me, that'd be great."

Lisanna, who was carrying a mug over to the beer tap, dropped it on the ground where it shattered. When they all looked over at her, she only blushed. "When you said it was a sex thing, Laxus, I only thought-"

"What?" Mira frowned at Laxus then. "What did you tell her we were doing?"

Groaning, he slammed his head down on the table before just reaching over and wrapping a hand around Natsu's throat.

"Laxus!" Mira yelled.

"Let's get one thing straight, you little pink haired loser." He tightened his grip as Natsu tried to fight him off. "You are the bane of my existence. If I could kill you, eat your heart, and gain your magic, I would. At least then it would be put to good use! But I can't. So-"

"Let him go!" Mira hit Laxus' arm then. "Behave."

As if conditioned to that word, he released the other male, who only hit the floor and began rubbing at his neck.

"Sheesh," Natsu grumbled, glancing at Mira. "You should have said he liked it rough."

And that's how Laxus ended up kicked out of the guild for the day by Mirajane after attempting to strangle Natsu while she had to explain very explicitly to Natsu and Lisanna that no, they in no way used his appearance to have sex with him. Because just…no. Just no.

Needless to say though, that hide and seek was abolished from their list of fun couple things to do. Not that Laxus hated it too much. The fewer things on that list, the better.