The winter festival revelry lasted until late at night. When the last drunken Mage was carried out of the Fairy Tail Guild hall, the snow had stopped.
Moonlight spilled onto the snow, and the entire city was as quiet as a painting.
In the Fairy Tail Guild hall, only a few figures remained, cleaning up the mess.
"These guys…" Mira looked helplessly at the chaotic scene: streamers, cookie crumbs, and overturned juice mixed together. In a corner, Marcus lay unconscious, clutching a half-empty bottle of honey-fruit wine, his face covered by Laki's knitted hat.
"I'll help." Yukino rolled up her sleeves, and starlight glowed on her fingertips as the Celestial Spirit Libra quietly appeared.
The Spirit gracefully raised its hand, and an invisible gravitational field gathered the scattered trash into a pile.
"Thanks~" Cana sprawled on the sofa, a small cake swaying in her hand. "You Celestial Spirit Mages are really convenient, huh? You can even use Spirits for cleaning."
Yukino's face flushed: "Actually, I don't usually use it like this…"
"Bang!"
A loud crash suddenly came from the second floor, followed by Natsu's booming roar: "Gray! You dared to steal my jerky!"
"Who stole it?! That was clearly mine—"
"Ice Make: Ice Geyser!"
"Fire Dragon's Iron Fist!"
The entire building shook violently, and dust sifted down from the ceiling.
Mira's smile froze on her face, and a vein throbbed on her forehead: "You two…"
She spun around, took the stairs two at a time, and a moment later, two screams and the thud of heavy objects hitting the floor echoed from upstairs.
"Problem solved." Mira clapped her hands and returned to the hall, her smile once again gentle. "Let's continue cleaning."
Yukino and Cana exchanged glances, swallowing in unison.
The next morning, Fairy Tail Guild.
"Argh! My back—"
Natsu wailed, sprawled on the sofa, while Happy gave him "rehabilitation therapy" with a dried fish.
Gray wasn't in much better shape; he was embedded in the wall in a large X-shape, with only his head and limbs protruding.
"Serves you right," Erza commented, sipping her hot milk. "Who told you to fight in the middle of the night and smash the Master's treasured liquor cabinet?"
Makarov sat by the bar, in front of him the shattered remains of a limited-edition whiskey bottle. The old man exuded a dark aura: "For next year's S-Class exam, your practical tests will be personally supervised by me."
Natsu and Gray instantly turned ashen.
"Master!" Marcus suddenly burst through the door, snowflakes still clinging to his head. "I found something good at the market!"
He mysteriously pulled out an ancient wooden box from his embrace, strange runes carved into its lid.
"What is this?" Cana leaned closer.
"I don't know!" Marcus rubbed his hands excitedly. "The stall owner said it was dug up from ancient ruins, and it was only three thousand! He said he gave me a special price because I'm a Guild member, and he even asked me to get an autographed photo of Mira for him."
Levy pushed up her glasses: "You haven't been conned again, have you? That 'ancient magic scroll' you bought last time was clearly a restaurant menu."
"This time it's different!" Marcus confidently opened the box—
"Pop."
A mechanical frog popped out, hitting him on the nose.
A off-key birthday song played from inside the box, and at the bottom, "Happy every day, Mira-chan~" was written in wobbly letters.
Silence fell over the entire hall.
"…"
"…"
"Marcus," Mirajane said, smiling as she crushed her teacup, "you spent three thousand on a prank toy that costs ten?"
"Wait! Let me explain!" Marcus turned and ran. "This time it really isn't my fault! That owner looked especially honest!"
Laki grabbed a broom and chased after him: "Give me back the money you owe me!"
…Warm sunlight streamed through the windows into the Fairy Tail Guild hall. Mirajane was preparing afternoon tea.
Cana yawned as she scanned the hall. "Why haven't I seen EZ?"
Mira turned, placing a plate of freshly baked cake on the bar, and casually replied, "He went back to his island. He said the Fire Crown Treant is about to complete its transformation, and he's returning to the island to test its evolved combat power."
Cana squinted lazily, "No wonder I haven't seen him since morning."
"Yukino, could you help me cut the cake?" Mira asked, smiling at the white-haired girl sitting opposite the bar.
"Yes, of course!" Yukino quickly put down her teacup and picked up a dessert knife.
"Wait!" Cana suddenly rushed over. "Let me teach her!"
She snatched the dessert knife, and mysteriously told Yukino, "Cutting cake is an art; you have to do it like this—"
Cana flicked her wrist, and the dessert knife drew a graceful arc in the air, perfectly dividing the cake into eight equal slices.
"That's amazing!" Yukino exclaimed, providing ample emotional value.
"That's nothing!" Natsu suddenly appeared from the side, flames igniting in his hand. "Watch my flame cutting technique!"
"Stop it!" Gray pushed him away. "Do you want to burn the cake?"
The two started shoving each other again, on the verge of knocking over the entire dessert table—
"Ice Make: Ice Wall!"
"Fire Dragon's Wing Attack!"
"Boom!"
The Ice Wall and flames collided, creating a burst of white mist.
When the mist cleared, everyone saw the cake suspended perfectly intact in the air.
The Celestial Spirit Libra stood beside Yukino, looking at Gray and Natsu as if they were idiots, then dissipated into stardust with a pop.
"Well done!" Erza nodded approvingly.
"Th-thank you," Yukino said, blushing.
Just then, the Guild doors opened, and an unexpected figure walked in—
"Yo, everyone's here."
Laxus strode in, his golden hair glinting in the sunlight.
Fried and Bickslow followed behind him; the trio looked like they had just returned from a mission.
The Guild fell silent for a second.
"Laxus!" Master Makarov, who was drinking with Macao and Wakaba in the center of the hall, exclaimed in surprise. "Did the mission go well?"
"Mm." Laxus replied briefly, his gaze sweeping over everyone and finally resting on Yukino. "A new member?"
"Ah, yes, yes!" Yukino nervously stood up. "I am Yukino Agria, please take care of me!"
Laxus nodded, said nothing, and walked straight to the bar.
Although his attitude was rather cold, it was definitely much better than before.
After more than a year of mutual training, everyone in the Guild had long since changed their perception of Laxus and the Thunder God Tribe.
These four guys were very strong, but they were good people, just not good at talking.
They also didn't cause trouble like the average younger generation of the Guild; they were reliable and serious Mages.
"Don't mind him," Cana whispered to Yukino. "He's like that with everyone."
Mira had already prepared a glass of hot milk: "Here, the usual."
Laxus took the cup, the corner of his mouth curving slightly upward: "Thanks."
Laxus looked at Yukino, his gaze lingering on her white hair for a moment. He subconsciously wanted to look back at Mira, but stopped, then paused in silence before softly asking, "Did you find the Guild on your own?"
Yukino was startled at first, then realized he was talking to her. She turned, bowed politely, and replied, "Ah… no, I was traveling outside and met EZ and Cana when they were on a mission. I helped them a little, and EZ invited me to join the Guild."
Laxus nodded, glanced at Yukino's white hair again, then turned to Cana, "Where's EZ?"
Cana relayed Mira's words.
Then the group began to chat.
Due to more than a year of communication and learning, the relationship between Laxus, the Thunder God Tribe, and their Guild mates had greatly improved, and there were no longer any barriers.
Seeing his Guild mates gradually grow stronger and cause fewer and fewer problems, and Fairy Tail's reputation becoming more and more positive, Laxus felt genuinely Happy from the bottom of his heart…
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