I walked home with my daughter sleeping on my back, taking a dreamland piggyback ride. She was so big now, almost four years old. A long sigh escaped me as my thoughts landed on Natsu, my precious soldier. The war against the dark guild superpower had come quickly and devastating losses were reported every day. The King of Fiore had put in a mandatory mage draft, where mages with offensive abilities were required to serve for at least six years in the front and then another three as tactical support. Mirajane had explained tactical support to me the other day, saying something about the mages being sent out where a battle was going awry. Natsu had served his six years while we were engaged before coming home for a two-year break. We got married and had a daughter. The next day he was called back for his three years and I was left to raise our child without her father. The guild helped me a lot, watching her while I took jobs to pay for rent, but no one could replace her father. I had grown up without a mother and an absent father and Natsu was abandoned by Igneel however you look at it; we didn't want our bundle of joy to have to grow up the same way, but the war left us with no choices.
"Mama… where's papa?" Nashi murmured sleepily. My eyes moistened at her question.
"Papa's protecting the country, sweetie. He's helping the King beat the bad guys." I told her gently. She tucked her face in my neck like Natsu used to do.
"I remember papa, I think… he smiled a lot, right?" Her breath felt hot on my skin, her inheritance of Natsu's high body temperatures ever present. When Nashi was born Natsu wouldn't stop smiling, but how could she possibly remember that? She'd been a little over a day old when he was drafted. "Papa smelled nice, like fire. I like the smell of fire, but papa's was special." I froze midstep. Our kid was recalling things from the day of her birth. Natsu had accidentally burst into flames when the messenger from the King came and had to be kicked out of my room. Nashi had been in his arms during the spectacle, but she had inherited Natsu's magic and was immune to flames. How did we know? When the doctor patted her on the back for the first time she burped out a small fireball that destroyed the curtains. Natsu had a laughing fit when he found out.
Her breathing slowed and I was certain she'd fallen asleep again. I shook my head slightly and finished the walk to our apartment. She probably smelled him the first time and the scent lodged itself in her little head. I pulled the door open and climbed the stairs to our door. When we got married Natsu found us a bigger apartment, this one with three bedrooms. Our current arrangement had Happy hogging a room to himself and Nashi in her own room next to the master bedroom. I placed Nashi in her bed, taking great pains to not wake her. I slipped off my jacket and made my way to the kitchen, my mind set on a glass of water. Happy was stuffing his blue face with fish. Again.
"Ne, Lucy, Nashi burned my fish!" he informed me indignantly, bits of fish meat landing on the table.
"She has a lot of power but little control. You're stuck with burned fish until Natsu comes back and can teach her how to improve her control." I told the blue cat.
"Can't you do that, Lushi?"
I shook my head. "I'm a different type of wizard than Natsu and Nashi. I need my keys to use my magic while they don't, so I don't know how their power works at all. I tried to ask Gray, but it looks like Nashi hates him." I wonder why.
"What about Juvia?" Happy spit more fish on the table. I gave him my death stare and he apologized, not sounding sorry at all. If looks could kill…
"She's on a job more often than not." A job with Gray. Those two were a more-than-obvious couple that refused to face the truth. Kind of like Natsu and me used to be, but then who am I to judge?
"Mama?" Nashi's voice echoed quietly through the hallway and I hurried to her room. Sitting up in her red blanket, she looked at me with large confused eyes. "I smell papa. Where is he?" I scooped her up and she snuggled into me, her hands hanging on to my neck.
"What do you mean, you smell him?" I asked her. She tilted head her head back to look at me.
"I smell him, mama, but I don't know where he is." She told me, her big eyes tearing up slightly. "Where?"
"He's coming home, Nashi. Go to bed and he'll come home faster." I told her gently, stroking her soft pink hair. She nodded and I set her down on her bed, tucked her in and went back out to finish chewing out the damn cat. He wasn't in the kitchen. Checking his room I found him dead asleep, or at least he was pretending to be.
"Charla... fish... Charla... fish..." The blue exceed had drool slipping down his face. I felt myself soften at his sleepy voice. Looked like he really was asleep. Sighing and bored with no one to scold, I went to clean the kitchen table from fish bits. My eyes fell on our wedding picture. I was in a flowing white dress and Natsu, well, Natsu was in what only he could consider formal attire. I think Erza must've had some influence on his choice, because even though his scarf was ever-present he did have a black coat and pants. I was smiling for the camera and Natsu gave his usual full grin while his eyes were trained solely on me. It was probably the best moment of my life, right next to Nashi's birth. Now because of the stupid war I might never see him again.
"Natsu, where are you?" I asked the empty kitchen.
"I'm right here." I spun around at the sound of his voice, the very voice that I dreamed of hearing every single day he was gone. There he was, still in his uniform, standing next to an open window. His trademark grin was out in full glory and his eyes were sparkling with laughter. "Quite a nose she has, eh?"
I stood frozen, unbelieving. He was here, right here, alive and well. He was home. "Natsu?" It came out as whisper.
"Hey, Luce." Just two words. Two very familiar and loving words that only he used.
"Natsu!" I flew from the counter and into his waiting arms. He was so warm. Tears slid from my eyes, barely noticed. He hugged me tightly, like it would have killed him to let go. It would have killed me, that's for sure.
"I'm back, Luce, and I won't have to leave again." He whispered against my hair, finishing with a soft kiss. I tilted my head up to look at him.
"I missed you, you idiot." I said softly, my gaze trapped in his. How I missed those onyx eyes, he'll never know. How much I missed him.
"I missed you more." He brushed his nose against mine. I breathed in his scent, the smell of smoke and flames. Of safety. Of home.
Then I remembered the window. "Would it have killed you to go through the door for once?" I asked him, trying to sound stern and failing miserably.
"Yep." He kissed me and I forgot about the window all together. His lips on mine - it was pure heaven.
"Who's that?" Nashi stood in the doorway, owl eyes staring at Natsu. His own widened as he looked at the three years that he'd missed.
"He's your papa, Nashi." I told the little girl. She sniffed the air.
"You smell like papa." She told Natsu. He shot me a confused glance. "Are you my papa?"
"Yes, Nashi. I'm your papa." He spoke softly. Nashi's eyes lit up and she ran to him, hugging his knees.
"I missed you!" She told him, looking up. He grinned and squatted down to be closed to her level.
"I missed you too." She hugged him and he straightened out, carrying the delighted little girl with him.
"She takes after you, you know. She nearly burned down the house on several occasions, most involving Happy." I told him. He just grinned and ruffled her pink hair, the shade an exact copy of his.
"What does she think of Gray?" He asked, coming close and giving me a one-armed hug.
"Why don't you ask her?" I knew what was coming. Natsu would treasure this moment for the rest of his life.
"Hey, Nashi, what do you think of Gray?" he looked at the little girl in his arms. She looked lost
"Icicle man?" I prompted. Natsu started to snort.
"Oh!" Nashi laughed. "I hate him!"
If anyone had looked through our window they would have seen a soldier in uniform rolling around on the kitchen floor, clutching his stomach and laughing. A little girl was trying to tickle him while a young blonde woman laughed along with them. It was a perfect moment.