Play Date

"I don't like this."

"Oh, come off it, Natsu. Nashi is five and Avalon is four. I don't think you have to worry about them doing anything they shouldn't. Avalon is a sweet boy. If anything, we should worry about Nashi ruining his innocence rather than the other way around."

"He's Gray's son. He may be fine now, but he's gonna be a little shit when he's older."

"Natsu. Stop it."

"Luce… I really don't wanna do this."

Lucy sighed heavily as she rubbed her temples. "Natsu, I am really not in the mood to argue with you today," she hissed, glaring up at him. "So if you do anything to mess this day up, I will cut off your balls with Cancer's scissors, grind them into little pieces, and then shove them up your ass. Am I clear?" Natsu stared down at his wife with wide, surprised eyes. He's never heard such a… gruesome threat come from her mouth. And it was directed toward him of all people. She folded her arms across her chest – which (he noted with a small, slightly pleased, internal smirk) was bigger than usual – and stared up at him with an expectant gaze.

"P-perfectly," he sputtered, taking a step back and turning away, wanting to get out of her line of fire before she decided to hurt him anyway. Lucy dropped her arms and stared after her husband.

"Natsu," she called, walking after him. Natsu stopped at the fridge and looked at her. "I'm sorry. It's just…" She placed both of her hands on her stomach, which was still relatively flat. "My hormones are going rampant." Natsu smiled and shook his head.

"It's alright, Luce," he said, opening the fridge and pulling out a bottle of water.

"You know I wouldn't cut off your balls, right?"

"I hope not…"

"So, Lucy," Juvia spoke up, sending a glance toward the kids. "Did Wendy tell you what gender baby is?" Lucy looked up from the book she was reading.

"Hm?" she hummed. "Oh!" She marked her spot in her book and set it down, a wide smile stretching across her lips. "Yes, she did. She told us that… it's a boy." Juvia clapped happily.

"Oh, Lucy! That is amazing! Have you and Natsu decided on a name yet?"

Lucy shook her head. "No. When we told Nashi that the baby will be a boy, she said that she wanted to name him. We're still waiting for her. She wants to find the perfect name for him." The two girls laughed, their gazes wandering over to the children as they played on the living room floor of Natsu and Lucy's apartment, their fathers sitting cross-legged on the carpet with them. Lucy giggled lightly as she watched Avalon snatch one of Nashi's toys, resulting in a pout on Nashi's face that mirrored Natsu's almost perfectly.

Avalon was a very sweet, outgoing little boy. He was simply adorable, and he and Nashi got along rather well. He's good at soccer – well, as good as a four-year-old can be – loves to talk, but he is, however, mildly allergic to cats, so he tends to stay away from Happy. Not that he doesn't like Happy, he does, but he would rather stay at a good distance from him than fall into a sneezing fit and have his eyes get all puffy. Avalon was almost the exact opposite of his sister. Amaya was quiet, preferred to stay inside, and was rather shy. She absolutely adores Happy, and she is already best friends with Nashi. They both love to read, and despite her shyness, Amaya was actually quite quirky and sarcastic. She was a lot like Gray in several aspects.

Thankfully, neither of them inherited their father's stripping habit.

What Lucy loved most about Nashi and Amaya's relationship was the fact it was almost nothing like the one between Natsu and Gray. They had opposite magical elements – Nashi being fire, and Amaya being ice – but they got along swimmingly. She could tell that they would grow up to be almost sisters. Smiling contently, the blonde turned back to her book and continued to read until Juvia reached over and touched her arm.

"Lucy, look at this," she said urgently, and you could tell just by listening to her that she had a wide smile among her face. Lucy looked up and followed her friend's gaze, her brown eyes landing on her husband. She couldn't contain the amused laugh when she saw him.

"Why, is the almighty Salamander Natsu wearing a princess crown?" she asked teasingly. Atop his head, sifted into his salmon hair, lay a plastic diamond-studded tiara. He grinned proudly as his chest puffed up slightly.

"Yes, he is, as a matter of fact," he concurred. "How does it look?"

"You look very pretty, Natsu."

"Thank you."

"You should wear it more often. It brings out your eyes."

"You think?"

"Yeah! You should totally wear it on your next mission."

Natsu scoffed, tossing the stuffed bunny that landed in his lap back to his daughter. "I dunno about that…"

The rest of the night went pretty well. Natsu had managed to keep his cool about his little princess and Gray's kid playing together. There was one incident, though, that nearly gave him a heart attack. The kids were playing house at one point, and for some reason, Nashi and Avalon were the "happily married couple." Hearing them say it wasn't so bad, but watching them hold hands and call each other "dear" or "honey" or other terms of endearment… that's what really made him freak out. He sent a look at Lucy, silently pleading for her to do something to stop it. But she was too wrapped up in thinking how cute it was. She did, however, send a warning glance his way, reminding him of her threat earlier that day. Juvia thought it was simply cute as well, and Gray seemed pretty much indifferent with the whole thing.

But, while he seemed unbothered by it, he was freaking out on the inside as well. But he'd never admit that to anybody.

"Was that so bad?" Lucy asked, hugging Natsu from behind as he finished brushing his teeth. He chuckled, resting his hand on hers as it rest on his stomach.

"It was mortifying," he answered before rinsing out his mouth. She scoffed and rolled her eyes, squeezing him gently before pulling away.

"Stop being melodramatic, Natsu. You had fun."

"No, I did," he agreed, turning around to face her, leaning back against the sink. "It was just that one part near the end, where they were playing house…" He shuddered.

"You are such a baby. It wasn't that bad. She had fun. Like… a lot of it. She's dead asleep on the couch right now."

Natsu folded his arms. "'Dead asleep,' eh?" he repeated, lifting a quizzical eyebrow. Lucy laughed and grabbed his hand, pulling him out of the room.

"I'm serious! Look at her!" They walked into the living room, and sure enough, Nashi was sleeping on the couch, the blanket pulled up to her chin. She was so deep in sleep, you couldn't even see her chest moving as she breathed.

"Wow," Natsu breathed, a small grin tugging at his lips as he approached her. He kneeled down beside the couch, placing a gentle hand on her shoulder. "Nashi," he whispered, giving her shoulder a shake. "Nashi, wake up." The little girl shifted with a soft whine. He grinned mischievously. "Nashi… Wake up, amai…" She groaned in annoyance and turned her head away, leaving her neck open to him. He chuckled and leaned forward, his lips hovering over her skin. He blew a puff of hot breath into the crook of her neck. She flinched and scooted away. He growled playfully, nuzzling his face into her neck. Nashi moaned and placed her small hands on his head, trying to push him away.

"Daddy…" she groaned. "Stop…"

"Come on, amai," he muttered, placing a kiss to her cheek. "Time for bed." She looked at him, her dark brown eyes heavy with the lack of sleep.

"But I'm not tired…" she whimpered.

"I don't believe you. C'mon, get up." She grunted and shook her head. Natsu sighed and slipped his arms beneath her, one around her shoulders and the other under her knees. "Fine, I'll carry you, you lazy butt." He lifted her up off the couch and turned toward her bedroom, catching a glimpse at Lucy as he passed by, who was watching the whole exchange between the two with a fond smile. She subconsciously lifted a hand to her belly.

A boy… They were going to have a boy…

Author's Note: hey, guys. Sorry for the long wait, but since school is almost out, I've been really busy lately. I've barely found any time at all for just me. My sister has finally become a grownup and has a job, so I've been driving around everywhere with her, trying to find where she has to be and a place to buy her scrubs. I've also been helping her with her graduation announcements. She's finally graduating medical school! Yay! And we've been having a lot of family coming over and wanting to go places with us. And then I have school, so… yeah. My schedule's been pretty booked as of late. But I am caught up with all of my school work, my sister has everything sorted out, and I've locked myself away in my room for the time being so I can get something done for you guys.

I hope this chapter wasn't too bad. It's just… I have a test on Monday, an essay due Tuesday, and a final on Wednesday, so my subconscious is constantly focused on school. I don't know why, though. I know I'm gonna get a good grade on it because I've already taken the class. It's just my math teacher last year didn't like me very much and failed me… Stupid bitch. It wasn't my fault she didn't know how to teach a class… It's because of her that I had to either retake the class or go to summer school. There is no way in hell that I'm going to summer school. Summer is my time, and I'm gonna spend it right.

Anyway, sorry for the long wait and the long note. Just thought I should explain myself… And since my mind is focused on school, I hope this chapter wasn't bad. But just like always, please leave a review. Since next week is my last week, I should be able to update quickly.