Rubbing my cheek, which was bright red from Gramps punching me in the face, I grumbled under my breath while approaching the request board, searching for a mission I could do; though, after a few minutes of searching, I groaned in annoyance. "Tsk, first Gramps doesn't hold back his punch, and now there is no interesting mission for me to take? Fucking annoying." Scoffing, I approached the table where Levy, Jet, and Droy were sitting. "Yo, what's up, big bro? Where did you get that injury from?" Glancing at Jet, who curiously gazed at the gash Erza had given me, I shook my head.
"Some stupid beast in the forest thought it could defeat me." My lie satisfied Jet as he nodded, though the word 'bandage' suddenly appeared in the air before it wrapped around my wound, stopping the bleeding and prompting me to glance at Levy. "Even if you heal fast, you should still wrap your wounds, big bro; what if you get an infection or a disease?" Smirking in amusement at her needless concerns, I leaned across the table and grabbed her cheeks, causing her to huff; though she didn't try to resist, she already knew it was pointless.
"C-Can you spob Bib Bro?" Smiling at her barely coherent words, I reluctantly released her cheeks, causing her to rub her face while Jet and Droy laughed. "Hehe, look at her smile, Jet; she secretly likes it." "Yeah, I can see it. She loves it when big bro dotes on her." Jet and Droy weren't trying to be quiet, so Levy heard them, causing her face to become beet red while she began to toss dangerous words at them using her Letter magic. "S-Shut it! Arrow! Arrow! Rock!" Chuckling in amusement as Levy warded the two off, I left the three to their devices while approaching Alzack, whose back was facing me, prompting me to wrap my arm around his shoulder as I embraced him tightly. "The heck are you doing?"
"Eh, n-nothing, big bro. I'm just cleaning my guns." Glancing at Alzack, who held his pistols, I raised an eyebrow, curiously eyeing his weapons before releasing him and patting his back, causing him to stumble forward. "Learn hand-to-hand combat as well; as a mage who fights from a distance, most of your enemies will want to get close to you, and you don't want to be caught with your pants down." Glancing at Alzack, who slightly widened his eyes before nodding, I grabbed his pistol and then shot myself, though the magic bullet only left a slight bruise on my head. "Also, having a more potent weapon wouldn't be bad, but I'd recommend getting stronger; though storing a lacrima within your gun is smart, even if you run out of magic, you can still fight."
Handing the pistol back to him, I patted his head before continuing through the guild, only for someone to suddenly hug me tightly; "Hahaha, caught you, big bro! Now it's time to experience the might of a bear hug!" Glancing at Nab, whose body was enveloped within a faint bluish aura resembling that of a bear, he grinned before squeezing me as hard as possible, though I just yawned, not even needing to use my magic to resist his strength. Although I was fond of Nab's magic, it might've been one of the worst magics to face me, given my history of fighting beasts constantly for seven straight years.
Rolling my eyes, I freed my arm before aggressively hitting his head, causing him to stare blankly at me for a moment, only for him to drop to the ground and roll in pain while his bluish aura of a bear vanished. "Ouch!" Staring at Nab, I just sighed and left him be. I didn't hit him TOO hard, so he'd be fine; there will probably just be a bump for a few days.
However, while intending to leave the guild, Bickslow suddenly wrapped his arm around my shoulder and whispered into my ear. "So, Cooper, have you and Evergreen, you know?" Giving Bickslow a weird look, I tilted my head to the side before whispering into his ear, only for him to blush deeply while quickly backing away. "N-NO! That's not what I'm talking about! I-I just wanted to ask if you and Evergreen kissed! How are you this young and so naughty!?" Scoffing at Bickslow, I rolled my eyes and continued walking. "You're the one being all suggestive; I'm not Warren; I can't read minds. Also, it's big bro."
Bickslow didn't have time to respond, considering Evergreen had heard him shout, causing her to attack him with Fairy magic. "T-The hell, Bickslow!? W-What's wrong with you!?" "W-What!? I'm just curious, dammit!"
Sighing at how dumb my little siblings could be, I rubbed my head and sneakily exited the guild before leaping onto the roof, enjoying the afternoon sun while napping.
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Several days have passed since Erza joined, and during this time, she's already made a name for herself, given how she isolated herself from everyone and defeated Gray every time he challenged her to the point where it had reached double digits; it was honestly a bit embarrassing. I had secretly asked Gramps about her past, though to my surprise, he also didn't know anything, having said Erza refused to tell him, which was annoying; however, that didn't prevent me from trying to help her, though they all ended up unsuccessful given how she ignored me and stayed to herself.
It was pretty irritating; no one had ever ignored me this long, and I had half a mind to teach her some discipline, but I refused to do so until I managed to break her cold exterior. I wanted her to see me as someone she could always count on, as the big brother I'm supposed to be… Not some bully. "She's making it extremely difficult, though." Clicking my tongue, I sat on the roof and gazed into the backyard, watching as Gray fled from Erza, who had just beaten him. "I-I'll be back again! T-This is a tactical retreat! G-Gray the Great doesn't admit defeat!"
Rolling my eyes at Gray's nonsense, I continued to hide my presence and watched as Erza sheathed her sword before leaving the backyard and walking the streets of Magnolia, causing me to raise an eyebrow as it was late at night; I wasn't worried she'd get attacked or anything, she was one of the strongest in the guild, but it was still highly suspicious. Deciding to follow after Erza, I leaped to a nearby roof and stealthily followed her, something I was confident in doing unless it was Nab; I wasn't exceptionally proficient in sneaking, and if he used an animal good for detecting, he'd probably sense me, but Nab isn't Erza.
I followed her for several minutes until she found a secluded bench by the river and just sat there, causing me to tilt my head, only to frown when I heard her crying. Clicking my tongue, I leaped from the roof and landed behind her before calmly sitting down beside her, causing her to flinch as she tried to quickly wipe her tears away, though I grabbed her arms, stopping her. "Why are you crying?" With a stern gaze, I eyed Erza, who bit her lip. "I-I prefer to be alone, okay. J-Just leave me be."
Snorting at her blatant lie, I held her arms above her head and forced her head onto my lap, causing her to stare at me in confusion. "Well, I don't care if you like being alone, Erza. I refuse to have any little sister of mine cry. As your big bro, it's my job to ensure my siblings are happy." Eyeing Erza, who silently looked at me, I awkwardly coughed and gently rubbed her head, doing my best to soothe her, though I didn't know if it was working.
Erza didn't say anything and didn't try to escape; she just silently lay on my lap while I continued to affectionately rub her head, occasionally brushing aside her scarlet hair; we stayed like this for several minutes before I eventually broke the silence. "Similar to you, Erza, I had a traumatic childhood that changed me forever, so I'm not good at expressing myself, but I just need you to know now that you're a Fairy Tail; you're family. If you need help with anything, whether small or large, I'll always help; that goes for everyone. If you need to be protected, I'll do so; I'll face the ten Wizard Saints for you if I have to." I could vividly feel heat rush to my cheeks as I spoke my true feelings to Erza; it was incredibly embarrassing for me.
"You're blushing." Glaring at Erza, who stared back indifferently, I growled in anger. "Tch, shut it! If you tell anyone about this moment, I'll eternally punish you!" Erza didn't seem the least bit affected by my words, but I was serious; the last thing I needed was Laxus, Macao, Wakaba, and Gramps making fun of me.
Grunting, I lifted Erza into my arms and walked back home, though she seemed a bit uncomfortable. "I can walk." I ignored her and carried her like a princess back to the guild before eventually setting her down just outside. "Now stop acting so distant; you'll love Fairy Tail… Also, don't you dare tell anyone!" Rubbing Erza's head, I narrowed my eyes at her eyepatch before heading east to a particularly stupid old lady. 'Tsk, I REALLY don't want to talk with her.'
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Ohh, is this the start of something special???