AN:

"Hello" - normal talking

'Hello' - thoughts

Chapter 20 - Concerns about the future

The Harvest Festival in Magnolia was right around the corner and everyone in Fairy Tail was terribly excited about it despite that it was only a week ago that they had fought in a guild war against Phantom Lord. Their victory over Phantom, the fact everyone was safe at the end and that a powerful and well-spoken-of mage like the Raven has joined their guild made it look as though their guildhall being destroyed was not that big of a deal. As for Laxus, most of the members also had no lost love for him, especially after he tried to attack their master. It would be safe to say that besides the Thunder Tribe and to, a certain extent, Natsu there weren't many that were affected by his excommunication.

However, some people weren't as pumped up for the upcoming holiday like others. People like Naruto. It wasn't that he was depressed or that he was sad - his life was better than ever. Living together with Mirajane in the past week has been like a dream come true for him. The reason for him not being in a festive mood was that worry was eating at him. There were too many things weighing on his mind, especially after he learned about what the Magic Council did only the previous day: they had fired the Etherion! He crumpled the newspaper in a ball and threw it in the rubbish bin.

'What in the world were they thinking?! How the hell could they have even considered the thought of firing Etherion just for a bunch of rogue dark mages?!'

But it could not be helped. With Jellal and Ultear having infiltrated the Magic Council as double agents and then manipulating the decision from inside, the Magic Council had done the unthinkable. Fortunately, somehow, the guild members involved in the incident have returned home safely but luck had played a massive role in that.

'I don't like this... Feels like things are getting more chaotic with every passing year. Something big is going to happen soon, I can feel it.'

He clenched both of his fists in worry when he thought about the future because the past week had completely shaken up his confidence. After being brought over by the Box of Ultimate Bliss in the world of Earthland, for a few years, Naruto believed that he was at the apex of this world in terms of power. His Sage Mode was now even more powerful than in his past life because he didn't run out of senjutsu as easily as before. In fact, the magic power he currently possessed was a perfect replacement in quality and power for senjutsu. That means that he no longer had to activate his Sage Mode or prepare for it beforehand like in his past life. Rather, due to his body passively absorbing ethernano - the energy present in nature - Sage Mode has become his base state. He was in the Sage Mode even he was sleeping. Considering that in his base state (Sage Mode) Naruto was already able to crush most of the S-class mages out there when he used his Take Over: Satan Soul, nobody could hope to defeat him... at least that's what he had used to think until the previous week, before meeting Acnologia, the Black Dragon of the Apocalypse.

'I couldn't even bruise him after using my entire physical strength despite him being in his human form. And against his dragon form...'

Naruto's Rasenshuriken was destructive enough to even raze small hills off the map. It obliterated everything on a cellular level. It was the deadliest technique in his arsenal. That technique, however, could not leave even a scratch on the Dragon's scales. And, if that was not enough already, his attack even served as nourishment for him, further boosting the Dragon's already immense pool of magic. Acnologia devoured his magic like it was some sort of delicacy.

But it wasn't only Acnologia that destroyed his arrogance, even Jose Porla's last-ditch attack made him have second thoughts about his actual power level.

'Luck made it that Porla was using an element to which I'm completely immune against while in my Satori demonic form. But if he was using a different element, what then?'

A mage in the league of a Wizard Saint was no joke and said mage casting a forbidden spell at the cost of sacrificing their life force was frightening. Had Jose Porla not been using Shade, a branch of Darkness Magic, but a different element, he could have seriously injured Naruto with that last spell that he had cast before dying. A cornered beast was not to be trifled with.

Therefore, because of all that, for the first time in 6 years since he had come to Earthland, Naruto thought:

'I'm not strong enough! I'm not strong enough to protect what I hold dear!'

'If Acnologia attacked Magnolia now, I'd be helpless to stop him. Everyone would get massacred: the townspeople...Fairy Tail... Mirajane.'

Acnologia seemed to be unstoppable, the Magic Council had just been dissolved - which meant that there was nothing keeping in check all the dark guilds in the kingdom anymore - and he learned of the existence of a weapon of mass destruction too. Life suddenly became a lot more complicated than before.

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Fantasia Parade had been as spectacular as ever, a complete success. Even Naruto had momentarily put aside his worries and enjoyed his time together with Mirajane and the rest of the guildmates. For the parade - the climax of the Harvest Festival - Naruto and 3 of his clones flew in mid-air with their large black feathery wings and each held a chain that was tied to the corners of a platform on which Mirajane stood seated on an onyx demonic throne in her first Satan Soul form. If Mirajane looked like an adorable and innocent fairy in her everyday life, when using Satan Soul she looked like an evil demonic queen. That impression was further cemented by how Naruto and his clones held her throne in the air by chains, as though they were her subjects.

All in all, everyone had a great time and even Naruto was marvelled at the experience - it was the first time he had ever participated in something like that. Ever since he moved in with Mira, it was like he was rediscovering the joy of being alive all over again. Despite not being a morning person, mornings were quickly starting to become his favourite parts of the day.

"Morning!" he said as he laid on his side, head resting on his arm.

Mirajane who had just woken up too smiled and said too:

"Morni- "

*blargh*

An unexpected retching sound was heard Naruto's vision darkened as vomit burst from her mouth all over his face! For a few seconds, both of them were paralyzed at the shocking incident.

"OH MY GOSH! I'M SO SORRY NARUTO!" Mirajane rasped out mortified, her throat still sore from having just puked.

The pungent smell assaulting his nose and the feel of vomit sliding over his entire face completely overwhelmed him with disgust. He could only turn on the other side and a sound of retching was heard again as this time it was him that was throwing up.

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"That was one hell of a way to let me know you're pregnant." Naruto chuckled, but his complexion visibly paled when he recalled what happened.

Two hours later, they were showered, the bed sheets were changed and the room was ventilated. They had not had any breakfast though as the incident was still too fresh in their memory.

Mirajane however, did not feel like laughing. After throwing up on him she actually started to cry from how embarrassed she was. It was true that Naruto had seen her until then in all sort of situations but due to her pregnancy, the change in her hormones made her even more emotional than she was normally. Even now, two hours later, she could still not look him in the eyes. Not to mention that she had never done something as embarrassing as that until then.

"I'm sorry!" she repeated for what had to the 30th time. "It... it just came out of nowhere! I didn't even feel like throwing up when I woke up, it happened in an instant!"

"Shh, it's ok. Don't beat yourself up over it," he said comfortingly and rubbed his hand on her back in circles to comfort her while hugging her. "But are you sure you are pregnant?"

Mirajane fidgeted nervously.

"My period didn't come this time and - " she paused and bit her lower lip while her cheeks became a little red " - for the past 3 weeks we've been doing it every day, often even more than once! Unprotected!"

Naruto felt his face heat up too at her words and his mind couldn't help recalling some of their previous lovemaking sessions. It didn't take much to get him started and Mirajane was always eager to go along with it, often being the one to initiate them. They were crazy, lost in their lust and love for each other. In fact, that's the real reason why he - as someone who used to hate mornings - began to love being woken up early on: because they would always have sex. He loved it especially when they showered together.

But he didn't keep on thinking about that for long. There was something else that took priority over that in his mind:

"I'm going to be a father?" he said in awe.

He understood that given their activities Mirajane becoming pregnant was a natural course of events, but it was only now that it dawned on him what that meant.

"I'm going to be a father!" he said again, this time yelling in glee.

Mirajane felt like a heavy stone was lifted off from her chest. She knew that Naruto had always wanted a family - he had told her as much when they had consummated their love for the first time - but she had still been worried that he might not want a child that soon. Seeing him acting so exuberant made her smile widely.

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Her previous embarrassment almost forgotten, Mirajane was happily walking with Naruto hand in hand on their way to the outskirts of Magnolia.

"What kind of medical office is located at the outskirts of the town, in the woods?" he asked in slight apprehension. He wanted the best medic possible to check up on Mirajane's condition, not some quack pretending to be a doctor to scam them.

"I know what you're worried about but don't. Porlyusica-san is probably the best doctor in Fiore, and I'm not exaggerating. Her personality is kinda...difficult but her skill is undeniable. She's the one that healed master Makarov when he nearly died from Aria's Metsu and she even created an eye for Erza when she was younger!"

"Holy shit didn't know that was possible! In my former world, you could transplant other people's eyes into your head but creating eyes was not possible. At least I've never heard of it."

"Yeah, Porlyusica-san is amazing. She's been Fairy Tail's guild medic for decades, she used to be master Makarov's teammate when they were young, so you can trust her too. So stop being a worrywart."

Naruto grinned at her words and his grip on her hand slightly tightened for a moment.

"So what are we going to name him?" he asked,

"What makes you think our baby is a he? I can feel it's a she, not a he!" Mirajane retorted.

Naruto shook his head.

"No way! It's going to be a boy for sure! Damn, I can't wait for him to grow up! I will teach him my Rasengan and my Kage Bunshin, I will show him how to fight! He's going to be an absolute badass, just like his father!"

A tick mark appeared on her forehead.

"We don't even know the gender of the baby and you're already fantasising about what you're gonna do a decade away from now?!"

Naruto actually giggled like a girl at her words.

"Tell you what:" Mirajane said "if it's a girl, I will name her and if it's boy, I will let you name him! How about that?"

"Huehue. Sound perfect to me!" he laughed and they shook their right hands to seal the deal.

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Crashing noises and screamed profanities could be heard from the private laboratory of Raven Tail's master, Ivan Dreyar.

"Jason, that fucking imbecile! Why the hell do they still keep him as the editor of the newspaper?! Nobody gives a flying fuck about some random brat and his whore of girlfriend!" Ivan screamed as he stomped with his feet on a newspaper on the floor.

It was a recent Weekly Sorcerer issue whose first page covered the story of 'the Raven joining Fairy Tail just so he could be together with his fiance'.

"His rating on Most Eligible Mage list went from the 8th position on the 3rd? To hell with that, you think I care?!" Ivan screamed once more as the newspaper combusted and turned into a pile of ash.

By the time he was finished venting out his anger and his frustration, his breathing had become laborious. He had heard about "the Raven" before but he had never paid him too much attention. He used to think that the Take Over mage was just a new rising "star" that relied on dating a sexy supermodel and acting as the Magic Council's lapdog in order to become famous. He had never thought much of his strength. However, when the article about him killing Jose Porla came out 3 weeks ago - something that Ivan himself was not 100% confident about achieving - and when his network of informants confirmed the veracity of the information, his opinion of the Raven changed accordingly. And now, the worst-case scenario happened: of all the legal guilds in Fiore, the Raven has chosen to join none other than Fairy Tail! The irony of someone nicknamed "the Raven" joining Fairy Tail was not lost to him either. He let one more scream of frustration as he thought about how poor his luck was.

However, not all was lost. An insidious smirk distorted his grim face when an idea appeared in his mind:

'The Magic Council has fallen. With Jellal and Ultear's betrayal and with the firing Etherion, the Crown has lost their trust in the capabilities of the Magic Council. There is no way that one of the 3 big guilds in the Balam Alliance will not take advantage of the situation.'

'In fact, my spies tell me Oracion Seis has become much more active as of late. They're surely cooking up something nasty. At that time, maybe an opportunity will arise.'

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Ivan's guess hit the nail on the head. A few days later, Makarov returned from one of the regular meetings of the masters of all the legal guilds in Fiore bearing grave news.

"At the regular meeting a few days ago, the Oracion Seis came up on the agenda. Seems like they're up to something. It was decided that this development cannot be ignored so a guild must be sent to eliminate them."

The members present in the guildhall at that moment were startled.

"And you just had to go draw the losing card as usual, huh, Jisan?" Gray asked in worry.

"Is Fairy Tail taking up that responsibility?" Juvia, one of the newest members of Fairy Tail asked too.

Makarov shook his head.

"Not quite, the enemy is simply too large for that. If we went alone, then we would eventually end up as the sole targets of the Balam Alliance's wrath. As such, we're going to be forming an alliance of our own!"

"An alliance?!" everyone asked in surprise.

"Fairy Tail, Blue Pegasus, Lamia Scale and Cait Shelter. Each of these guilds is to select a number of members, and those members will join forces to defeat the enemy!"

Natsu couldn't contain his excitement at the thought of fighting powerful enemies and jumped up saying:

"We can handle those guys alone! Hell, I can handle those guys alone!"

Naruto, who was present in the guildhall as well, scoffed.

"What was that, you feathery bastard!" Natsu yelled.

Natsu had challenged Naruto more than 10 times in the past 3 weeks since he joined the guild and every time he was beaten down easily. The worst part was that it looked like Naruto was bored through it all, not even trying. It pissed Natsu off to no end and since then he had been holding a grudge. It was kind of similar to how his relationship used to be with Laxus. The difference, however, was that Naruto seemed to never give in to his provocations. If anything, he was treating Natsu like an immature little boy - which only increased the pink-haired boy's frustration.

"There is a fine line between being confident and being dumb."

Steam began to come out of Natsu nostrils but Naruto explained:

"There are nearly 40 dark guilds in Fiore."

The rest of the people in Fairy Tail were stunned speechless when they heard that number. However, as a former proxy of the Magic Council, Naruto was more aware of how dire the situation in the Kingdom was than most people.

"And, of these 40 dark guilds, Oracion Seis controls nearly a third. Think about it, Natsu: 6 mages are powerful enough to order around and instil fear in several other hundreds to make them obey them. It's also safe to assume that you won't be fighting only the six of them but their subordinate guilds as well."

The mood became rather grim when they realized how powerful Oracion Seis was. Noticing this, Mirajane elbowed him in the ribs. He laughed awkwardly - his social skills truly were as bad as they get.

"Ma, ma, no need to be scared of them either. After all, I defeated two of their members alone."

That was a piece of information that even Mirajane did not know.

"A few years ago Cobra and Racer ambushed me while I was on my way to Era. They wanted to avenge Eisendwald's annihilation or to make me join them. They were pretty powerful in their own right, but their magic abilities had a very good synergy too. Cobra is a Dragon Slayer - " at that Natsu's eyes became wide " - and he has poison-related abilities. But the most formidable skill of his is his Sound Magic. It is so high level that he can hear your thoughts! Literally! That makes fighting against him extremely difficult. As for Racer, his ability is simple but just as hard to deal with. He is an expert in Slow Magic. He will slow down your thought process and perception of time, making you think he's moving at an insane speed when in fact you're the one moving at a snail's pace."

"We were evenly matched while I was in my base form, but once I cast my Satan Soul they actually ran away. It was at the time when I annihilated Eisenwald and the power of my Take Over was probably still too fresh in their mind so they lost all the fighting spirit."

Natsu gulped when he heard that. While he was annoyed at Naruto for treating him like he was a little kid, he had never underestimated his strength. It was just in his nature to challenge strong people to fights. He believed that that was the best way to improve. That said, he knew how powerful Naruto was even without his Satan Soul. Thinking of how Naruto had to use his Take Over magic in order to deal with them made him understand that Cobra and Racer were really powerful. Even if he didn't want to admit it, on a subconscious level, he realized that they might be even stronger than him. But it didn't scare him. It only fired him up even more.

"That was a rather valuable piece of information, Naruto," Makarov said. "Be sure to impart it with the members of the other guilds when you meet them."

"Eh? You want to send me?"

Makarov hmmed in confirmation.

"Yes, I was thinking of sending you, Mirajane, Erza, Natsu, Grey and Lucy. Happy too."

The blue cat nodded in pride at having his name mentioned too and flew on top of Natus's head in enthusiasm.

"I'm afraid I can't go, Master, nor can Mira," Naruto said.

It wasn't only Makarov that was surprised, Mirajane too cried out:

"Why not, Naruto?! I want to be there with the rest, to help them! And so should you, our strength could be an immense help for them!"

However, Naruto was unmoved in his decision.

"No way. I couldn't care less about Oracion Seis or whatever dark guilds might be lurking out there."

His blunt statement made quite a few of the present people look at him weirdly, but he didn't care.

"I'm not weak, Naruto-" Mirajane said as she was beginning to get irritated but Naruto cut her off:

"I know you are not weak! I'm the one who trained you! But there's no way I'd ever let you go fight dark mages while you're pregnant!"

A poignant silence was instilled in the guild for a few long seconds, but then a collective cry of surprise came out of everyone's mouth:

"EHHH?!"

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That night, Naruto and Mirajane had their first argument since they started living together. She kept insisting on going to fight and help her fellow guildmates against Oracion Seis tomorrow, while Naruto was adamant on making her stay home.

"The world can burn for all I care! Your safety and the safety of our girl is the only thing that matters to me!" - after their visit to Porlyusica a few days ago they learned that their baby was going to be a girl.

Mirajane had an aggravated look on her face. Thinking rationally about it, she knew that Naruto was right in wanting to prioritize her safety but she could not bear with staying at home and not doing anything while Erza, Natsu, Grey and Lucy were going to fight in life and death battles against such powerful dark mages like Oracion Seis. Because of that, while she couldn't find any more words to retort against Naruto, she left the room and threw herself on the sofa in the living room.

"I'm sleeping on the couch tonight! Don't you dare come over!" she yelled from the living room.

Naruto felt like pulling at his hair in frustration.

'Damn it, why can't she understand I only want what's good for her?!'

He inhaled deeply and exhaled slowly. He focused on getting his breathing under control and calm down his temper. While at the age of 22 he was much more mature than how he used to be as a teenager, he still had a short fuse. It took years of practice until he learned to control his temper as well as he was doing now. The problem, however, was that Mirajane was very similar to him - even in having a short fuse like him - and it was two times as difficult to keep himself in check.

'I'll let her sleep it over. Probably it's also because of her pregnancy. I read that women become much more impulsive and emotionally unstable when they are pregnant. Maybe in the morning, she will have calmed down.'

With that thought in mind, Naruto didn't go in the living room to continue trying to convince her to accept the situation right now when she was still too angry to think rationally. Instead, he turned on the lamp next to the bed and grabbed one of the books piled up on top of the nightstand. He had bought them all a few days ago after their visit to Porlyusica and they all treated similar themes - on the cover the book that he had started to read it was written in bold letters: WHEN PARTNERS BECOME PARENTS.

Naruto admitted it to himself that he never been book smart. He had been dead last at the Academy and that didn't change during the Chunin Exams either, being one of the very few genins that actually handed over their paper completely blank, not being able to answer even one of the theory questions. Furthermore, he was also an orphan and had never had a proper father figure in his life, a role model. The closest one to being a father figure for him had been Jiraiya, but that man was more of a degenerate than most of the people he knew. He was a good man but definitely not a good role model. Naruto had never had an example of how a good father should be.

He was excited about becoming a parent soon but he was equally anxious too. He wanted to be for his baby girl the father that he had never had. He wanted to be a good husband for Mirajane as well... he wanted to have a happy family and a beautiful future. That's why, even in spite of the fact that he hated reading and studying, he chose to do just that - to read and study about how to become a proper partner for Mirajane and a good father for his soon to be born daughter. It was for the sake of his family.

AN: Mirajane throwing up on Naruto and him being overprotective of her... ahh couple life, right? lol. And yes, expect to hear about Raven Tail again very soon in the future.

(Not an English native and I have no beta either. Sorry for any mistakes I may have made.)