Siblings and Slayers

It was with a headache that Laxus awoke the next morning. He probably needed to sleep some more. He'd just been kept up for well over the course of two days and his body was still recuperating.

Had Mirajane been up, she'd have teased him about being old. Maybe. Considering she was still resting as well, he figured the joke would be cutting it a little close to home.

"Demon," he mumbled as he opened his eyes slowly. She was laying with her back to him and didn't stir at his words. Grunt. That was just as well. With a groan, he shoved up slightly in bed to glance at the clock.

Six in the morning. Even if he hadn't just been through hell and back that wasn't a normal time for him to be awake.

What had woken him up?

He really didn't want to, but his worry level over his daughters were already raised, given the activities of the past few days, so he had no choice, but to get up and check on them.

It was when he walked out of his bedroom that he about ran into one.

"Marin," he whispered as the little girl only stared up at him in shock. She'd been rather weepy since getting in, but that wasn't too shocking. Her emotions were usually out of whack to begin with. Being kidnapped hadn't helped anything. "What are you doing up?"

"I went potty."

"Oh."

Staring up at him with her mother's shared eyes, she asked, "Was that bad?"

"Of course not, kid," he grumbled, reaching out to pat her on the head. "I'm just on high alert. Heard somethin' and came to check on it. That's all."

"Is he gonna come back?" As she spoke, the little girl moved closer to him, tossing her arms around the man's waist. "Daddy?"

"Of course not. And it wouldn't matter if he did. You didn't get to see it, Marin, but I was a force to reckon with."

Holding tighter to him, the little girl only said, "Scared."

"I didn't mean to make you upset, kid," he sighed, stroking at her head. "Just go back to bed."

"No."

"Oh, Marin-"

"Scared."

"Come here, huh? Let's not wake Mirajane or Haven." He shook her free gently before taking the little girl's hand in his once more. The sun had yet to begin to rise and, though the sky outside was finally starting to lighten, the house was still dark inside. "Did you wanna talk about what happened or something?"

"No," she was quick to say. She didn't even want to think about it. Never again. Gripping his hand tightly, she said, "I won't ever be bad again."

"Ivan didn't take you because you were bad, Marin. That wasn't your punishment." He had taken her to the kitchen, but wasn't all that hungry himself. Glancing down at his daughter, he said, "I mean, yeah, I told you guys not to go to the park alone, but what happened wasn't your fault. Okay? You need to listen to me when I tell you to do something though."

Sniffling, she said, "Haven wanted to go."

"Yeah, well, Haven's probably gonna wanna do a lot of bad things," he grumbled, almost shaking at the thought. She had a mixture of Mirajane's childhood self and his teenage years coursing through her body already and she hadn't even hit puberty yet. Ugh. "Not that she's bad or anything, but she's that type of person. She pushes boundaries. But you're not, are you?"

"No." Sniffling, she said, "I wanted to stay with Aunt Ever."

"I thought so."

"I love her."

"I know." With a sigh, he let go of her hand before moving to bend down in front of the child. Getting on his knees, he took her face in his hands, staring heavily into her eyes. "You went because you didn't want Haven to think you were a baby, huh?"

With a nod, she said, "And Locke and Navi."

"Well, you are the baby ."

"No."

"Yes, you are."

Shaking her head as best as she could with his hands over her cheek, she said, "I'm not a baby."

With a frown, he said, "Well…you're not a big kid either."

"Am too."

"Marin-"

"I was real brave," she told him. "Locke said so. And Uncle Bickslow."

"Yeah, well, they're opinions are pretty null to me."

"Daddy-"

"I know you were brave." He leaned his own head forward then, to rest it gently against hers. "I don't doubt that at all. But you're still so little."

Sniffling, she said, "Locke and Haven used their magic, but Aunt Lissy said that I was even better then, that I didn't need it to get back home."

"You talk too much to your aunts and uncles, kid."

"Daddy."

With a sigh, he turned his head up slightly so that he could press a soft kiss to her forehead.

"I wasn't going to do it so soon," he began as he got to his feet slowly, releasing her head, though the girl only titled hers up once more to stare at him, "but since you brought it up, I guess we can talk about it now."

"What?"

"Marin," he said slowly as he kept looking down at her. "You told me when I first started teaching Haven magic that you didn't wanna learn. Right?"

"Right." Magic was scary. She didn't like it. And being in Fairy Tail meant going away on jobs and missions and leaving your mommy and daddy behind. It sounded horrible.

"Well…" He wasn't sure what to say to her, honestly. He rarely had a real conversation with Marin. Mostly just played with her. Or protected her from Haven's wrath. "You've heard me talk before about when I was a kid, huh? I was real sick like you."

She nodded. "Yes. You gots a dragon inside you that spits out lightning!"

"Sorta," he said. "But not at all like that."

"Daddy, I'm hungry."

Sighing, he patted her on the head before turning to go start on breakfast.

"Right. Okay. You want eggs?"

"Scrambled."

"Of course."

She followed him over to the fridge. "Can I stir 'em?"

"Mmmhmm."

Marin rushed over to the table then to grab a chair and drag it over so she could use it to stand on. That way she could see over the top of the counter.

"But about my…dragon," he said after a moment or two of just cooking. "You know it's not really a dragon in there, right?"

"Mmmm…Natsu is a dragon," she said with a giggle. "Navi said so. But you're not a dragon. You gots one in you. Huh?"

"I got a lacrima in me. You know that. That's…That's my dragon." He glanced at her. "It's what Ivan wanted with you and Haven. He wanted to put one in her."

"Why?"

"Because it'll get more powerful, the more powerful the mage gets."

"Then hatch into a dragon?"

"You're fixating on the wrong part of this, kid."

"Bet your dragon's hatched," she said with a giggle. "You're really strong."

"I am, aren't I?"

Nodding, Marin said, "Strongest mage ever!"

"Ever," he agreed. "And that's more than just the lacrima, you know. I train for this. I- Wait. We're not talking about me, Marin."

Really? They did that a lot. She was a little shocked, to be honest.

"We're talking about you," he said. "And…and Haven."

Bleh. That was the other thing they did a bunch.

"See," he said slowly. "Haven's a little different than you. Err, well, a lot different, I guess. But one thing she's always wanted was to be like me."

"A boy?"

"No, Marin," he groaned. "To…to learn my magic. And you've never wanted that. You don't like it at all, do you?"

"No." With a shake of her head, she said, "It's scary."

"It can be," he agreed with a nod of his head. "If you don't learn how to use it properly."

"Mommy's scary." She remembered then, suddenly, the terror she'd felt the other day when she saw her mother's Satan Soul.

"Oh, no, yeah, I'm totally with you on that." Smiling, he was quick to add, "But she'd never hurt you, Marin. She became that to save you. Trust me; our demon knows what she's doing. She's almost as strong as Daddy."

"Almost?"

"Almost."

Marin was skeptical, but still nodded. "But still scary."

"Well, you like it when she transforms into other things, huh?"

"Like a doggy or a kitty," she said. "Not a monster."

"She's got a wide range of magic. She's one of the best there is. But she'd never use it to hurt you. Ever. She loves you so much." He reached over to pat her on the head. "That just goes to show you, huh? About how helpful magic can be?"

"Guess so."

He laughed at the face she was making. "You still don't like it, do you?"

"No."

"Well, I'm only talking about all of this with you because…well… You know how mean Haven is to you sometimes?"

Try all the time. With a nod, Marin said, "Yes."

"Well, it's just because…of me, I guess. I ruined her, I know." With a sigh, he said, "She's a spoiled little brat, ain't she?"

Well…if they were being honest…

"But," he continued on. "Sometimes she does some nice things, huh?"

"Mmmm… One time, when I dropped my candy on the ground, she made Locke give me his."

"That's not… Okay, so she very, very rarely does nice things. Slanted things, but with a nice twinge."

"Daddy, do we have to talk about Haven?"

"We're getting back to you," he assured her. "This is all about you. It's just a little muddled."

If he was sure.

"What I'm trying to say is, Marin," Laxus went on as he finished cracking eggs and gave her the bowl to stir them. She and Haven really liked doing that for some reason. They used to fight over it, when they were younger, but Haven was getting to the point that she wasn't that interested in helping out in the kitchen. She'd go play with her friends until she had to come home for dinner. "You're really sick, baby. And Daddy has a lacrima now. One that I got from Ivan. And I was going to give it to Haven. It'll make her a slayer. A real one. Like me."

"Wow!" Marin almost spilt the bowl of eggs in her excitement. "Really?"

"Yeah and-"

"Haven's gonna be a slayer?"

"Well, Marin, I-"

Giggling, she said, "That's good."

"Is it?" Laxus frowned, staring down at her. The child only nodded.

"Haven'll be super strong."

"Well, it's doesn't work that way exactly. I mean, she'll still need to train and-"

"Can we make a cake?" Marin was still grinning, her white hair falling out of her face and she turned her head once more up to stare at him. "Daddy?"

"Why would we make-"

"For Haven's party."

"What-"

"For being a slayer."

"Marin…" With a sigh, Laxus said, "Haven's not going to be a slayer. She told me and your mom that she didn't wanna be."

Blinking, Marin looked back at her eggs. Oh. That must have been why she didn't say anything.

"'cause she was bad?"

"What? No. I'm not…taking it away from her," he was quick to say. "At all. I was giving it to her. I wanted her to be one. For her to…be like me. I wanted it as much as her."

"But-"

"She didn't want it," he kept up, reaching out to rest a hand on her shoulder, "because she wanted you to be it."

Marin blinked. Then she shook her head and went back to stirring the eggs.

"I don't wanna be a slayer."

"What? Marin-"

"I don't wanna. Haven wants to be one. Not me."

"I know. But when I got a lacrima, I got better. It strengthened my immune system," he explained. "And I think it might for you too. But they don't grow on trees, baby. They're really hard to find. And even more expensive. You know I'd do anything for you, but this is probably the only one I'll ever be able to give you. So-"

"I don't want it."

"Marin-"

"You're so stupid, Marin."

Both of them frowned before glancing over at the doorway to the kitchen. Haven was standing there, still in her nightclothes and wearing her signature scowl. She was never pleased. With anything.

"Haven," Laxus warned. "You-"

"And how could you, Laxus?" she went on. "Making breakfast without me?"

"I wasn't making it without- Well, I was, but-"

"You're so rude."

"Look, you little brat-"

"And Marin," she said as she headed over to where they were standing. Out of fear, Marin jumped down from the chair, just so her sister couldn't shove her off it. "You have to take the lacrima."

"No."

"Yes! I said so." Haven was over to her then, glaring down at the younger child with a dark stare. "You're gonna take it and get better. Then you won't be sick so much."

"No." Turning her head, Marin said, "I don't wanna."

"Yes!"

"Hey." Laxus went to go grab Haven's arm and drag her away from her sister. "You don't boss her around. This was a me and Marin conversation, alright? You butt out."

"You just like being sick," the blonde kept up, glaring at her younger sister all the while. "You big baby."

"Am not! Am not!"

"Yes, you are. You're scared of the lacrima. You're scared of magic. You're scared that if you're not sick anymore, Mom and Laxus won't have to baby you and you'll have to grow up!"

"No!"

"Stop it," Laxus told them both harshly. "You're going to wake Mirajane."

"Then take it, Marin." Haven never knew when to quit. "Take it and get better and stop being sick. So you won't die. Else I'll make you take it!"

Fearful of her sister then, the little girl turned to run from the room. She was almost out of the doorway too when she ran into her mother.

"I don't care," Mirajane began as she came into the room, "what you three are doing, but doing it quieter. Please."

"Mommy!" Marin was quick to wrap her arms around the woman. "I don't like Daddy or Haven!"

"Me?" Laxus let go of his other daughter who only took to crossing her arms, defiant as ever. "What did I do?"

"You gotta suck it up," Haven kept up. "You big baby. You're gonna get better. I'll force you. You're gonna be a slayer. I mean it."

"Wow, Lax," Mirajane sighed as she had to start comforting her youngest daughter. "Way to handle the situation with tact."

"I was," he defended. "Before this one showed up."

"I was helping," Haven told them both.

Marin was sobbing then, but when Mirajane started stroking her head, she tilted it back to look at the woman.

"I just want eggs."

"Okay, baby. We'll make some eggs."

"Just me and you?"

"Just me and you." She glared at her husband and oldest then. "I promise."

So that was how Haven and Laxus found themselves stuck out in the living room, seated on the couch next to one another, pouting.

"I was handling that situation just fine, brat."

Haven snorted. "You're just an old man. You can't make nobody do nothin'."

"I sure saved you, didn't I?"

"No! I was fine."

"Already rewriting history? Not even a day after?"

She still wouldn't look at him. "I don't want Marin to be sick no more. And…I don't wanna be a slayer. Not if it means that she won't get better. That's no good."

"I know, kid," he sighed, glancing down at her finally. "I don't get what it's like to…have siblings, but I do know what it's like to care about something. And if I could keep you guys safe forever…I just love you and-"

"Ew, Laxus, don't be gross."

"I can be as gross as I want," he said, still looking down on her. "'cause I remember a little girl that told her daddy just how much she loved him just the other-"

"Stop it!"

"Nope. I love you, Haven. And I know that you love me too. Don't you? My little baby."

"You're so gross!"

Looking off finally, he left the grin on his face as he said, "You're a good leader, brat."

"Like I care," was her response though, from the light coming in from the then rising sun, her smile was as plain as day. "Old man."

Neither spoke again until Mirajane called out from the kitchen that it was time to eat. Even then, Haven only raced for the kitchen as Laxus grumbled about how there had better be some bacon.

"Haven, Laxus," Mirajane said as they came to take their seats at the table. Marin was already there and only stared at them. "Me and Marin were talking and she's decided that she'll think about the lacrima and decide very soon."

"But-" Haven started. When Laxus shook his head at her though, she fell silent for a moment before saying, "Fine. But you better not get really sick and die or something. Then I'll be weird like Navi and Locke and not have anyone to boss around."

"That's not why you have a sister," Mirajane told her though Marin just giggled.

"You take as long as you need," Laxus told his youngest daughter. "The lacrima ain't gong nowhere."

"Yeah," Haven agreed as their mother came to join them at the table. "Who wants one anyways? Then you'll be a cheater like Laxus."

"I'm not a cheater."

"You are a cheater. You're not even a real slayer. Most your strength comes from the lacrima. Mine'll come from training! 'cause I ain't a cheater!"

"You little-"

"Now, now," Mirajane sighed, glancing around the table at all of them. Haven and Laxus looked ready to throw down while Marin was only interested in her eggs. "Let's remember that not twenty hours ago, we were all just so happy to be reunited."

"For now," Haven grumbled. "'cause I'mma go and start my own guild and it's gonna be loads better than yours, old man! It won't be filled with cheaters!"

"Good luck with that, brat. When you have to have a little boy fight all your battles for you."

"Locke didn't do nothin'! I could have beat that woman too."

"Talk is cheap."

"Whatever, cheater."

"I'm not a cheater!"

Mira looked to her youngest then, who usually to really upset by fighting.

"Are you okay, sweetie?"

Nodding, Marin glanced over at her with a smile. Quite honestly, it felt good to hear her father and sister argue. They only did that when they were safe. When everything was okay. When they weren't all in danger.

"I'm okay."

And she was. The girl didn't know yet if she would ever be a slayer or if she even wanted to learn magic period, but she did know that it was okay if she didn't. With a demon, slayer, and a monster of a sister around to protect her, who needed it?

Needed to go ahead and get this out before I posted the next story in this universe. It's kinda a bridge between Lost and Found and whatever the new one's going to be called.

And bleh. I'm going out of town Monday and probably won't get back until Friday, maybe Saturday. I'm not going to have any internet or anything, so if you PM me or something, I won't be able to get back to you. Also no updates until then. I'll try and get Last Month updated before I go, but who knows. I'll be writing while I'm gone though, so hopefully I'll have some stuff to post when I get back. Maybe even have the first chapter of that new story.