Disclaimer: I do not own Fairy Tail or any of the characters (I wish). I just enjoy writing about them. They all belong to Hiro Mashima.
This was an entry for 2017 Fairy Fest with the writing prompt, Family. My group and I came up with the characters and general idea, but I did the writing. Check us out on DeviantArt to see the accompanying images and to see my teammates Panda-Poodle and SuperNanigirl. :)
Levy was tired. It was clear from the heaviness in her eyelids, the smudges under her eyes, and the soft blankness to her face. Her movements were slow, and her hair was a wondrous mane of blue somehow held in check with her signature now dark headband, branded and lined so that it resembled the iron appearance of her husband when in dragon force. Her lips curled up in a soft smile as she touched the silky band with reverence, her eyes turning to find said husband, the man she once feared and now loved more than life itself – Gajeel Redfox. He stood beside her hospital bed, his lips twisted in a wry smile, his red eyes flashing as he held his hands up in mock battle position. His voice was as deep and gravely as ever, but he kept it low for the sake of the newest bundle of joy soundly sleeping in the bassinet next to her hospital bed – the reason why she was so tired. They had just welcomed their newest addition to the family just a few hours ago, and Gajeel, proud father that he was, was instructing their eldest son in the ways of protecting his little sister – a job he was taking very seriously.
"Can't you do that somewhere else?" Panther Lily grumbled from his spot perched on the side of the bassinet. He couldn't take his eyes off the pink bundle, his tail swishing back and forth as he watched the tiny newborn sleep with obvious fascination. His cheeks were flushed pink, his normally harsh and fierce eyes soft and shining with hearts and stars. From the moment he laid eyes on the head covered in soft baby blue hair, he had melted, his warrior's heart stolen by the tiny little girl.
"Reika has to protect his sister! What better time to learn?" Gajeel challenged, blocking a hard punch from his four-year-old son. "Nice one!" He held up a hand to stop his son, turning flashing red eyes to his Exceed. "I don't remember you being like this when Reika was born." His smile widened as he taunted his friend.
Lily's cheeks darkened to red as he peered at Gajeel over his shoulder. Levy snickered, covering her mouth with her hand as she watched the two bicker. Before a smart comment could leave either of their mouths, she interrupted. "Actually, I believe Lily took one look at him and said, 'I want one'. And that's how we ended up with Ace."
Thinking of the tabby cat waiting for them at home, Gajeel couldn't help but laugh. Levy was right. Lily had taken one look at Reika and wanted his own. He had looked at them with such wide, sad, pleading eyes, that he and Levy had been incapable of saying no. So as soon as they got home, Lily had gone out and found himself a lost kitten to raise as his own. Now, Ace was quite possibly the best-behaved cat in all of Magnolia and was fiercely protective of Reika, thanks to Lily's "parenting".
Realizing they were talking about the cat that was just a few weeks older than himself, Reika wrapped his arms around his father's leg and looked up at him with his lower lip sticking out in a pout. His hair, dark and unruly like his father's, nearly touched his neck. "Awe, poor Ace is stuck at home all alone!"
Levy smiled at her son's concern. He looked like his father – dark and wild hair with sharp features, but his eyes were soft and brown like hers. Dragon slayer magic was already coming to him with natural ease, but he also showed interest in Levy's solid script magic. They still weren't sure which path he was going to take, or if he would take both, but regardless, his heart was pure. From the moment they told him he was going to be a big brother, he vowed to protect his little sibling with his life if need be. "Reika, you don't need to worry about Ace. Auntie Lucy and Uncle Natsu promised to take care of him while we're here." A crooked smile crossed her lips when she looked at Lily and the Exceed's ears flattened, sensing a taunt when her eyes narrowed. "We all know your godfather won't be able to leave Aurora long enough to take care of him."
Gajeel's laugh was deep and rich as it filled the room, Lily taking flight to land a punch. "Stop it, Lily! We all know you're the best Exceed for the job!" he recovered, batting him away.
"Now I know you aren't lumping me in with that blue idiot!" Lily complained, swinging again.
"Lily!" Levy cried, her voice harsh even though it was quiet. "Do you want to wake up your goddaughter with all your arguing?!"
Sufficiently chastised, Lily dropped onto the bed, his cheeks darkening as he lowered his eyes. He had been beyond honored when Gajeel and Levy had asked him to be the godfather to their children, even though he couldn't help but ask them why they chose him. The choice had been obvious they said – he was the closest to them and he was their family. When he argued that if something happened to them, it was most likely to happen to him as well, they had glowered at him, Levy nearly bursting into tears at the idea (she was seven months pregnant at the time and partially had hormones to thank for that), but had finally agreed to have a backup plan. And so Natsu and Lucy – "Auntie Lucy and Uncle Natsu" as they were now affectionately called, were now their second set of godparents, even though the dragon slayers still continuously squabbled when they saw each other.
As if she sensed they were talking about her, Aurora stirred in her sleep, tiny hands and tiny feet wiggling beneath her pink swaddle, soft murmurs and smacks escaping her little pursed lips. Four sets of eyes immediately turned to her, breath held, waiting to see if she was just stirring, or if she was going to wake. When her eyes slowly opened, blinking slowly as her eyes adjusted to the light, Gajeel looked at his wife, taking in her look of exhaustion, and swooped in to pick up the infant.
Sometimes it was still shocking to see Gajeel holding a child, let alone a newborn. He was big and gruff, hardly gentle in anything he ever did and he was always so brash and harsh, so unconcerned with the feelings of others. Only slowly did that wall start to give way and he allow Levy access to that softer side of him that he only showed her – the side that showed he did care about what happened to his friends, the side that showed he cared that he even had friends. It was the side she grew to love because it was so rare and so reserved – it was what made him so special. And as their love blossomed and grew, finally becoming the true devotion between a husband and wife that she saw the true nature he hid deep inside. From the moment he found out she was pregnant, he was a changed man – maybe not to everyone's eye, but to Levy's he was. He was even more tender and more ferocious (if that were even possible) in his protectiveness. He was gentle and curious about what was changing within her, and yet nervous at the same time – concerns, fears, anxieties, and excitements they shared throughout the nine months of waiting. When Reika was born, it was like the missing piece to the puzzle was found. Reika was the heat needed to melt his iron heart, and watch it melt she did. The moment he held his squirming and squealing son in his arms, Gajeel was never the same, at least in her eyes. She couldn't help but smile at the change as she watched her iron-willed husband melt even more as he looked into his daughter's red eyes – his eyes.
Gazing into his daughter's eyes, Gajeel lost sense of everything but the tiny bundle in his arms. Sometimes it still felt so surreal, being a father, having a family, but as his daughter gripped his finger he smiled. Warmth spread through his chest, filling his heart with so much love it felt like he would burst. There was a time when he thought he didn't even need others, let alone friends. Now he couldn't imagine life without Levy, without Lily, and without his family. He had done some horrible things in his life, but in the end those acts brought him to Fairy Tail, and Fairy Tail brought him to Levy, who opened his heart and his mind to what life was really about. She made him feel things he never thought he would or even could. Now he held life in his arms, life he had created, and it was a feeling unlike any other – a feeling he would cherish with all of his being.
"Can I hold her?" Reika asked softly from his side, slowly drawing Gajeel from his thoughts and back to the present.
Not needing to, Gajeel's eyes flicked to the face of his wife, his smile softening when he took in her now sleeping form. Nodding, he answered quietly, "Yes, but let's sit down first, okay?" Reika, the ever-energetic four-year-old that he was, bounded to the couch near the wall and jumped up, swinging his feet happily as his father made his way to his side. Lily joined them a moment later. "Remember, just like we talked about, she's not very strong yet, so you have to protect her head, okay?"
"I remember."
Gajeel's eyes narrowed slightly. There was no doubt Reika was his son – he sensed attitude in that remark, and more than a little bit of an eye roll, but he let it slide. Lily smirked from his position on Reika's other side, noticing the same thing and shaking his head softly. Rather than comment on it, Gajeel carefully transferred his precious daughter into the awaiting arms of her brother, watching with wonder as his son's eyes widened and his mouth fell open once her small weight settled into his arms and onto his lap. Her head nestled easily into the crook of his arm and she licked her lips, blinking up at him before furrowing her brow.
"Hi," he whispered, squeezing her softly. "I'm your big brother." Lily couldn't help it. Tears welled in his eyes and he willed them away. If Gajeel saw him getting emotional now… "I've waited for so long to meet you," Reika continued, his eyes only on his sister and not the rest of his family beside him. The tears Lily fought slipped down his cheeks and he quickly wiped them away. "I promised Mom I'd look after you and protect you." He lowered his head, keeping his mouth close to her ear as he smiled wickedly. "But Dad also promised to teach you how to fight! And we'll teach you magic! And Lily will take you flying! You'll get to go to Fairy Tail and meet everybody! Just you wait!" Hearing his son's words, Gajeel gee hee'd and shrugged when Lily looked at him, a knowing look in his eye. His moment of conspiracy over, Reika sat up and looked to his father with excitement. "Dad! When can she get her mark?! Doesn't she need her guild emblem?!"
"Gee hee," Gajeel couldn't stop himself. "Hold on, Reika. Let's get her home first before we go getting her her Fairy Tail mark."
"Where are we gonna put it?"
Lifting a pierced eyebrow, Gajeel shrugged. "We'll decide that when we get there, but seeing as you have mine," he indicated the black emblem on Reika's left shoulder, "your mom might want Aurora to have hers. Only fair."
Pouting, Reika looked back at his sister's now sleeping face. She was so small, and so quiet; it was hard to believe she had the same dragon slayer blood flowing through her veins as he did. His mother's mark was on her left shoulder, not always visible if her hair covered it, but it practically glowed, and he found that it suited her because he thought she glowed, especially when she smiled. Perhaps Aurora would be the same way. "Hey, stop that pouting. Aurora's probably going to go to the guild before we even make it home! Mira and Erza will never let us hear the end of it otherwise." While Gajeel intended the words to sound grumpy, Lily could hear the love and appreciation in his voice. Gajeel had found his place in the world.
Reika's eyes lit up at the mention of Mira, who always gave him sweet things to eat, and Erza, who always sparred with him. "When do we get to go home, Dad?" he asked, his eyes newly alight when he looked up at his father.
Gajeel's eyes moved back to his sleeping wife and he leaned back into the couch with a sigh. Aurora had been born in the middle of the night and none of them had really slept much since. "It will be a while yet, Kiddo." As if to agree with his statement, Lily yawned beside him, triggering his own yawn that then triggered a chain reaction in Reika. "Let's all get some sleep, huh?" He gently took his daughter back from his son, loosening her swaddle and positioning her on his chest. She squirmed until she was comfortable, her tiny nose resting against his neck. His calloused and rough hand gently rubbed the capped back of her head, so small it easily fit in the palm of his hand. Such warmth and love flooded his chest that he thought he might burst.
Reika watched his father for a moment, smiling as the man that was larger than life snuggled with his baby sister. Once Gajeel settled back comfortably onto the couch, his legs sprawled, his head dropping back and his eyes closing, Reika laid down beside his legs, propping a pillow against his father's knee and pulling a blanket up over them. Lily took one last look at them before flying to Levy's bed and dropping at her feet.
Lily looked from the Redfox in the hospital bed to the three across the room, a smile gracing his features and crinkling the scar that marred his eye. He loved his little family and wanted nothing more than to watch it grow and grow and grow… His cheeks darkened at the thought and he turned in a circle before dropping down, curling into a ball at Levy's side. She hardly stirred, except to utter a content sigh and drop a hand onto his head between his ears. He smiled, snuggling into her gentle touch, and quickly fell into a sleep shared by the rest of them.