Fairy Tail's guild hall was unusually quiet that morning, the kind of calm that usually hinted at the possibility of chaos brewing beneath the surface.
Mira stood behind the bar humming to herself, wiping a clean glass with a cloth. Her gaze wandered now and then to the large table by the window, where Shinra sat reading a book—calm, composed, utterly oblivious.
Until Erza walked in.
"Good morning, Shinra," Erza greeted, her tone composed yet unmistakably softer than usual. She wore her casual armorless attire—a rare sight—and carried a small basket in her hands.
"Morning, Erza," Shinra replied with a polite smile. "You look... different today. Comfortable."
Erza paused. "Is that a good thing?"
"Very much so."
Behind the bar, Mira's cloth froze mid-wipe. Her eyes narrowed slightly as she watched the exchange.
Erza placed the basket on the table. "I baked these yesterday. Would you like to try one?"
Shinra blinked. "You bake?"
"On occasion," she said, a little flustered. "For close friends."
"Then I'm honored," he said, picking up a small tart and taking a bite. "This is... surprisingly amazing."
Mira's eyebrow twitched. "Surprisingly?"
Erza turned around, startled to find Mira standing right behind them, smiling sweetly.
"Mira," Erza said, guarded.
"Fancy seeing you here. Baking? That's new. Shinra, would you like something that doesn't threaten to kill your taste buds?" Mira offered him a fresh cream-filled éclair with a flick of her wrist.
Shinra looked between the two desserts, blinking slowly. "Uh… They're both really good."
Erza huffed. "You haven't even tried hers yet."
"I know a sugar trap when I see one," Mira teased, nudging Erza's basket.
"Oh, please. At least I didn't bribe the judges."
Shinra raised a hand, trying to calm the growing tension. "Ladies, I'm sure both your baking is amazing—"
"Don't change the subject," both women said in unison.
He sighed. "I walked right into this, didn't I?"
Cana passed by, dragging a barrel of wine, and laughed. "So it begins."
---
Later that day, Mira found herself helping Shinra with some paperwork related to a client's request. The two sat close, the afternoon sun casting golden rays over the guild's wooden floor.
"You're pretty good at this," Mira said, watching him write with graceful precision.
"I used to handle a lot of logistics back in my past," Shinra replied casually.
She leaned in slightly, intrigued. "You've never talked much about that. Were you alone?"
He hesitated. "For a long time, yes. I had comrades, but... I was different. Always held back."
Mira tilted her head. "I think I know that feeling."
He looked at her. "Because of your magic?"
She nodded, her voice softer now. "After Lisanna... I sealed my powers away. I was afraid of what I could become. I stopped fighting, stopped smiling for real. Then you showed up. And somehow, I started breathing again."
There was a pause between them, warm and open.
"You're one of the bravest people I've met," Shinra said. "You didn't just survive—you chose to live again."
Mira flushed slightly. "Careful, Shinra. That kind of talk might make me fall for you."
He chuckled softly. "You say that like it hasn't already happened."
Her eyes widened briefly before she smiled, biting her lip. "You're dangerous."
---
That evening, Erza appeared again—this time in her armor, arms crossed.
"I see you and Mira had a nice afternoon," she said, looking at him with narrowed eyes.
"I see you've been watching from the rafters," he replied dryly.
"That's not the point," she muttered, cheeks a little pink. "I was just… making sure."
"Of what?"
She turned to the moonlit window. "That you're alright. That you know how much you matter to us—to me."
He walked beside her. "I do."
Erza glanced at him, a thousand unsaid things in her eyes. "Good. Then I won't hold back anymore."
---
The next morning, the guild was treated to a peculiar sight. Erza and Mira were in the middle of setting up a training schedule.
"He'll train with me Monday, Wednesday, and Friday," Erza declared.
"Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday belong to me," Mira countered sweetly.
Shinra blinked. "What about Sunday?"
Both women turned and answered at the same time:
"That's date day."
The whole guild exploded in laughter as Shinra slowly buried his face in his hands.
Cana raised a toast. "To Shinra: our poor, poor soul."
Levy giggled, whispering to Lucy, "You think he'll survive this war?"
Lucy smiled. "He's stronger than he looks. But this might be his toughest battle yet."
---
And so began a new kind of storm in Fairy Tail—one filled with blushing faces, dessert wars, sneaky training duels, and the quiet promise of something deeper. The calm between arcs was anything but boring.