[====]-[===]-[====]
Yoichi turned to face the entrance of the Guild at the same time that Makarov did.
There, standing between two massive double doors, stood a girl around his age with a fearsome scowl. Her hair was a similar shade of white as his own, and was pulled back into a high ponytail. Her outfit reminded him of both Jiro and Tokoyami. Two people who often dressed in either punk, or gothic styles. Though, their outfits were usually far less revealing, compared to what the girl wore.
'So, this must be Mirajane.' He thought in realisation. 'The infamous Demon, Gildarts told me about.' Yoichi could already tell that the title was appropriately given. With only a little of her magical power, she had plunged the entire Guild into a deafening silence.
"Mira! Enough." Makarov didn't raise his voice as he spoke. And yet, it still thundered through the Guild, as if he had said it in his giant form. The girl in question scoffed at the command. But, as she stepped further into the Guild, the aura around her did lessen.
It didn't disappear entirely. But, it reached what he could only guess was considered an acceptable amount. It was enough of a change, that those around the Guild felt comfortable to speak again, though even then, it was only in hushed whispers.
Mirajane gave him a quick once over, her eyes lingering on his missing arm, as she approached where they sat. Though most would consider it a glance, he could tell that she had already made up an opinion of him. Turning to the Master, she handed him a rolled up piece of paper, and spoke.
"The mission has been completed. The bandit camp has been taken care off, and...well..." She didn't show any physical signs of being embarrassed, but Yoichi had watched people long enough to tell that she, at the very least, felt a little awkward. "...There may have been some property damage involved."
Makarov groaned at the news, already rubbing at the bridge of his nose. The earlier cheerfulness he had displayed, becoming forgotten in an instant.
"I'm starting to understand what Gildarts meant when he said the Fairy Tail spirit was causing destruction," Yoichi muttered in realisation, raising a brow as Mirajane turned to look at him again.
"And you are?" She asked haughtily, tilting her head up, to try and peer down at him over her nose.
'Try', being the keyword there.
With her shorter height, Mirajane's attempt at displaying her 'superiority' had only made her look silly. It was akin to a small kitten trying to stand up against a fully grown lion. An amusing effort, but ultimately a useless one. Just as a lion would ignore a kitten due to it posing no threat to it. Yoichi too, only felt amused at seeing Mirajane try to cow him into submission.
"Its polite to introduce yourself first," Yoichi explained with a mocking smile.
Mirajane scoffed in response. "If you can't recognise who I am, then your either blind, or your deaf."
"Who knows, I might be both." He lightly shrugged.
"Is that so?"
"Maybe."
She gave him a sweet smile. "You must be new to the Guild."
Yoichi had the ability to see the future, and yet, even without activating the required Quirk, he could already see exactly where this was heading.
Makarov pointedly cleared his throat. "Well, Yoichi is-"
"Oh, so your name is Yoichi." Mirajane's smile grew wider. It still remained as sweet and innocent looking as before. But, Yoichi wasn't blind to the Demon hiding behind the mask.
"Is it? I could never really tell."
"Maybe you should get your hearing checked out."
"Sure, why don't you join me? We can have a look at getting that stick pulled out of your ass together."
The smile on her face remained fixed, and yet somehow, the temperature around them seemed to suddenly plummet.
If the two teenagers had paid any attention to their surroundings, and not each other. They would have easily noticed the silence of the Guild and likely stopped. As it was, they didn't, and as such, the Guild was granted front row seats to what they could only consider free entertainment. Some of them watched in amusement, whilst others felt a sense of eagerness. Nevertheless, all of them collectively also felt pity—though, it was entirely reserved for Yoichi.
"Do you want to repeat yourself?" Mirajane asked after a tense second had passed.
"Why should I? I think you heard me well enough the first time...unless, of course, it's you who needs to get her hearing checked out." Yoichi responded with a fake smile.
She hummed aloud, one of her eyebrows visibly twitching, before she turned to face the Master and said; "With your permission, and my status as a senior member of the Guild, I volunteer to take Yoichi here under my wing to show him the ropes."
"Now hold-" Poor Makarov, the old man got out even less this time before before Mirajane quickly interrupted him.
"You agree? That's great." The enthusiasm that she spoke with was as fake as both of their smiles. Tilting her head to look at the One For All user, she nodded at the bar. "The first thing I'll be teaching you is combat. We'll start in five minutes, on the grounds located at the back of the Guild. Agreed?"
"Agreed."
"Good," Finally, the smile on her face vanished, revealing the true person hidden behind it. Mirajane's face twisted into a snarl, her next words being spoken with a threatening growl. "Because when I'm finished with you, you'll be missing more than just an arm."
"Mira!" Makarov thundered in indignation.
The girl in question huffed, but offered no apology. Instead, she raised her head high, and stomped right out of the Guild without a second glance.
Yoichi only had one thing to say.
"She's quite charming."
Every person currently within the Guild had one shared thought at his flippant words.
'He's crazy!'
[====]-[===]-[====]
As it turned out, Mirajane wasn't the only one who felt excited about this so-called 'lesson' taking place.
The whole Guild had gathered outside to watch their fight take place from a safe distance. Even Makarov—the man, who only a few minutes ago had been telling him to not go through with it, was now cheerfully drinking his wine and handling the bets being made. Because yeah, apparently gambling was something they all took part in when a one on one fight was announced.
He should have felt annoyed that people were betting on his downfall, but...
"You better bring this home kid! I placed sixty-thousand jewels on you! I'll treat you to some dinner and drinks after this!" Gildarts shouted at the top of his lungs with a bright grin.
…But, with such freely given support and trust being placed on his shoulders, it was hard to not get caught up in the excitement. Especially, as those around Gildarts exclaimed in surprise, and hurried to change their own already placed bets.
It seemed that his guides title wasn't just for show. Being the Ace of Fairy Tail actually meant that people not only listened to his input, but also valued it.
Not that it mattered, as the old Master had just closed the betting pool. Leaving those who had rushed over to remain with their bets placed on Mirajane.
And speaking of Mirajane. Not only was she the favourite to win this impromptu match of theirs, but she also had her own two little cheerleaders. A younger girl and boy who shared such a resemblance to her, it only made sense that they would be her siblings.
Yoichi wasn't blind to the irony of the situation. Whilst he and Tomura had sought to kill each other, Mirajane's siblings were instead openly and lovingly, showing their support for their older sister.
It was a sweet thing to see, even if he felt slightly jealous of his opponent in the moment.
'Get your head in the game,' He told himself with a light scoff, pushing away the lingering emotions with practised ease.
Whilst he would have preferred for this fight to take place after he had gotten some rest. He knew he couldn't just postpone it, at least, not with an opponent like Mirajane.
If he did, it would only send the message that he was afraid to fight her—or worse, not capable of defeating her. Two things that were entirely untrue, mind you, but to someone as arrogant as she was...well, there was a reason people said that, 'actions speak louder than words'.
Honestly, he had no one to blame for this mess but himself.
He had gotten lost in the fun of verbally sparring with someone, and had entirely forgotten just how weak he currently was. If he had taken even a second to think, he would have recognise three facts before accepting this fight.
The first, was that his body was only moving because of the pain-nullifying Quirk he currently had active. If it was deactivated, he'd last all of a second on his feet, before he hit the ground as the pain swallowed him whole.
The second, was the fact that his energy was still recovering, and as such, it meant anything he used in this battle would be on the weaker side.
Finally, the third, was that he knew nothing about Mirajane's capabilities. All he had really learnt about her was that she was called the Demon, had come back from a supposed bandit camp practically unscathed, and had the confidence to think she was one of the strongest in the Guild. Really, it didn't paint a pretty picture for him, especially because he worked best when he had viable information to use.
"So, how are we doing this? Are we aiming to kill until someone gives up, or are we doing first blood?" Yoichi asked, clenching and unfurling his fist in a practised manner.
Mirajane scoffed at his words. "First to draw blood? What kind of weakling are you? In this Guild, the loser is either the first to admit defeat or to lose consciousness."
"Huh, well, would you look at that, I am learning." Yoichi mocked, making a clear reference to her calling this whole thing a 'lesson'. "I guess I should start calling you Teacher Mirajane."
"Nope," She smirked, baring her teeth in a threatening manner as she spoke. "After this you'll be calling me Master."
"You know, somehow I doubt that. After all..." He smirked, his voice becoming laced with an arrogance he rarely showed. "...You're quite weak."
There was silence at his declaration. It felt as if the whole world had decided to hold its breath in that moment.
…Only for it to be broken a second later, as a younger girl with chestnut hair bellowed from the side.
"Can you two stop flirting already and fight?!"
There was another brief pause. Then, as if the floodgates had been opened, the rest of the Guild was quick to join with jeers and laughter alike.
"Is this a lovers quarrel?!"
"That new guy sure works fast!"
"Sister Mira has a boyfriend?! And she didn't tell me?!"
"Reedus! Quick, Mira is blushing, get it painted down!"
"We'll hang it up somewhere in the Guild!"
"Yoichi! I'm so proud of you kid!"
Yoichi felt his cheeks warm at their words. But, even then, he couldn't help but find their cheerfulness slightly infectious. Not that the same could be said about his opponent.
Mirajane's face had flushed scarlet, though it was hard to tell whether it was from embarrassment or fury. Either way, his earlier attempt at making her angry, and in-turn sloppy, had worked out better than he had hoped.
"All of you! Shut up!" She screamed, the same magical aura from before ripping itself into existence. Almost instantly, the Guild did as they were told. Though he could still see the grins that remained on a select few individuals.
"And you!" Mirajane turned to point at him threateningly. "Fight me!"
If her personality wasn't so demanding, brash, and arrogant, he might have even said that she looked cute in the moment. Mostly to annoy her, and partly because it was true. But, as it currently was, he only found her confidence amusing.
"Sure," Yoichi nodded as he raised his right hand and pointed an open palm towards her. "Catch this. Dismantle."