Sloane was resting on the living room sofa with some pillows propped upward, and they were comfortable enough for her head to adjust to. Her platinum blonde hair lengthened up to her shoulders, but this time she was wearing it in a bun and a floral headband was right in front of it.

She was growing tired of being up on her feet all day at nine months pregnant, and she was left with sore feet and swollen ankles. Her dreadful fear of being swollen by her due date had sadly come to reality, as she gazed downward to see her abdomen. It was large and spherical, and her white tank top was constricting all around. Her naval bulging outward and stretch marks on both sides of her bump were what she was loathing the most, and her size transitioned her walking from normal to waddling like a penguin. But that wasn't all; her waist size had drastically increased and it was tight on the waistband of her copper-colored maxi skirt.

I can't wait for this pregnancy to be over, she thought to herself, as she placed her right hand on top of her bump and gave it a few gentle strokes. The baby's due in a week and I've already dreaded being so swollen. Laxus promised me that he would be there for the birth, and we even discussed the birth plan with Wendy.

And speaking of him, her husband Laxus was away on a solo mission to earn more jewels for himself and his wife. It was his last hurrah before they would become new parents, and by then they would be in for a hellish first-time experience with sleepless nights and agonizing sounds of the baby crying. As for Wendy Marvell, she had concurred to be their midwife for the first time and their guild master Makarov's old friend Polryusica agreed to assist her. They would carry out the delivery plan together at Magnolia Hospital whenever Sloane would go into labor; otherwise, they would induce her in case she was more than three days overdue.

It's been nine long months, and I'm ready to have this baby. We'll also reveal the gender once I've given birth, as a special surprise to the guild. That's why we had the gender guessing game at my baby shower two weeks earlier.

The Fairy Tail members who attended Sloane's baby shower had to vote for what the baby's gender would be. Those who voted for a boy would place blue pebbles inside the "BOY" jar, whereas anyone who guessed a girl would put pink pebbles inside the "GIRL" jar. Anyone who guessed the correct gender would win special prizes after the baby's birth. It was an idea set up by the party's hostess and the guild's S-Class barmaid Mirajane Strauss, and her siblings Elfman and Lisanna were responsible for buying the two bags of blue and pink pebbles and setting up the gender guessing game table and jars.

Just as Sloane closed her eyes to nap, she swiftly opened them up when she felt a light tug on the hem of her skirt, which was draping off the cushions of the couch. She glanced downward to see one of her celestial spirits, Lepus the rabbit.

"Lepus?" she said, leering down at her as she observed the rabbit climbing up onto the sofa. "You opened your own gate again, didn't you?"

Lepus swiftly nodded to her master, only to hear Sloane sigh lowly and observe her head shaking back and forth. The rabbit gazed downward with her head hanging low, feeling ashamed that she had displeased her owner by opening her own gate.

"I'll have to close your gate later. You can be quite troublesome sometimes… that said, I would thank you for keeping me company while Laxus is away."

Lepus nodded to her again as she saluted her, and in return Sloane showed her a smile of content. The rabbit then leaned her head downward and laid her right ear onto Sloane's swollen bump. From inside, she could pick up the baby's heartbeat as if it were a metal detector that had just sensed a metallic item hidden from within a sandy beach.

"The baby hasn't started to kick just yet, but it's fortunate that you can hear the heartbeat. He or she is probably resting right now."

Lepus kept her ear close to Sloane's bump, listening to more beats from the baby's heart. All of a sudden, she felt a kick against her ear and she jumped back in fright. The little rabbit scurried away and hopped onto her master's head. Sloane hoisted the rabbit from there and placed her spirit next to her left shoulder, giving her a pat on the head afterward.

"I think I may have spoken too soon," she said, sighing lowly as she shook her head again. Her arms then folded across her torso as Lepus hid herself from behind her left shoulder. "I'll let you feel the baby later. You've gotten startled by a small kick it just gave me."

Lepus dipped her head lower, peeking from behind as her golden eyes observed Sloane's hand stroking her large belly. The baby wriggled for a short time before settling down again, to her and Lepus's relief.

"You rest for now, little one," Sloane said to her baby. "Next time, be gentle to Lepus. She's one of my celestial spirits and she'll make an ideal playmate for you."

Later that evening, Laxus opened the front door to their home and dropped his bags to the floor. He was physically drained from his solo mission, and all of that hard work paid off for him courtesy of his Lightning Dragon Slayer Magic. Not only that, he also showed the determination to never give up for the sake of Sloane and the Fairy Tail guild. It only took him two to three days to successfully complete the mission.

"Hey, Sloane?" he called out in search of his wife. "Sloane?"

"I'm in the nursery, dear," she answered from upstairs. It was clear enough for him to listen to her since the door to the baby's room was open, and the Lightning Dragon Slayer ascended up the stairway to that room. The moment he paused at the open doorway, he spotted Sloane standing near the crib alongside Lepus. She turned to see him with a smile of content on her face and waddled over to her husband. A light pink blush tinted on her fair-skinned face as she observed him leaning in toward her and they exchanged a kiss with one another. Lepus was awed by their romantic gesture, as she loved seeing them show affection to one another.

"All of this waddling is making me uncomfortable," she said to him. "I look like I'm about to burst any day now…"

"That's why you should be resting," he replied. "Then again… you're one week away from your due date."

"Of course I have been resting, on the sofa earlier today with Lepus. Soon, the baby will be here before you know it, Laxus. Wait until how our first night with it will go."

"Oh, my Mavis, it'll be hell for us. The little one keeping us up all night with the constant crying, begging to be fed, loved and changed. He or she will be leaving us tired and miserable."

"I know, I know. Ariella and I were a breeze for our parents, but Juno was a little more difficult. She'd keep them up with her strident wails, even after being fed, given affection from them, and gotten her diaper changed every night. It was only during the first month of her life, though."

"No wonder why she was troublesome for us," Laxus said of Juno. "Always acting like a bratty child who didn't approve of our relationship until the wedding. Sure she was pissed at me for accidentally knocking you up, but at least she and Ari are looking forward to meet our child."

"And speaking of the baby…," Sloane said, as she took Laxus' hands and placed them on her swollen belly. "I think it wants your attention again."

Once his wife laid her hands on top of his and gently grasped them, Laxus could detect the baby wriggling excitedly and a round of kicks that followed. Her pale blue eyes then observed him leaning down to her bump's level while keeping his hands still.

"How are you doing in there?" he said softly. "Your mother and I are anticipating your arrival."

Lepus was observing them from nearby as she was standing beside her owner. Her golden eyes blinked twice, as her ears began flicking with curiosity. She was observing how Laxus interacted with the baby and she wondered what it would be like outside of Sloane's body.

"You're ready to come out anytime soon, aren't you?" he added. "It won't be long before you enter not only the world, but also the guild we call home."

The little rabbit spirit lightly tugged on the hem of her master's skirt with her right paw. They glanced down to see her lifting her arms up, indicating that she wanted to be held and feel the baby, even though the child's kicks startled her earlier.

"Ahh, Lepus," Sloane said to her. "I see that you want to interact with the baby as well."

"I'll have to pick up that little cottontail for you, Sloane," Laxus reminded her. "Your back will hurt if you bend over to reach her."

"Go ahead," she replied to her husband. "My back has ached the past few times I've tried to pick Lepus up anyway, due to being the size of a beached whale."

Laxus knelt downward and hoisted Lepus up from the floor to Sloane's swollen bump. The moment the little rabbit spirit reached to it and placed her paws on it, the baby gave her a small kick and she flailed slightly. She was about to freak out the last time she detected the baby's movements, but this time Laxus and Sloane were there to help her overcome her fear.

"It's saying hello to you, Lepus," Sloane said. "Are you willing to accept this baby as a part of our family? You'll get to play with him or her while I do the housework and Laxus goes out on jobs to make money for us."

Lepus nodded to her in response, albeit her paws were getting a little shaky with anxiety as the baby continued kicking.

"I'm sure Lepus would be useful for you," Laxus assumed. "But what if I decide to watch the baby?"

"Then we'll stay home and keep a close watch together, if I don't have any missions to do. That way, I won't have to worry about wasting my magic with Lepus and leaving the baby all alone."

The baby's movements changed to wriggling around some more, with Lepus's paws still on her master's swollen belly. This type of movement was slightly less frightening to Lepus than the kicks were, as it was quite a scary experience for the rabbit to see some being kick inside of Sloane's body.

As he was still holding Lepus, Laxus inquired:

"I'm in need of a bath, as I've been sweaty from all the fighting and it's left me with a foul odor. Can you apply the lavender scent to the running water, please?"

"Of course, Laxus. I'll be glad to provide you with some extra towels as well," Sloane answered with a nod. "I'll have to make our pasta dinner afterward and rest for a little bit. This baby is definitely wearing me down because of how heavy he or she is becoming on my body."

"What about Lepus?"

"I'll keep her out for a little while longer. And then, I'll send her back to the spirit world so you and I can spend the night together."

"That would be great. I don't want her pestering me during my time of relaxation, though. She's bugged me to come in the bathtub a few times before…"

"She likes the scented baths as much as you and I do. Even the baby feels the same way, as I would feel it wriggling around each time I get into the bath," Sloane said to her husband.

"Looks like he or she would be a fragrance enthusiast like you… and that weird guy from Blue Pegasus…"

"It's Ichiya," Sloane answered, as a vision bubble appeared above her head and she could see him performing his signature pose and his catchphrase "Meeeeeen" echoed throughout.

"Yeah, yeah. Thanks for reminding me about him…," Laxus replied with a low sigh. "Have you heard from him and the other members from your previous guild?"

"Of course. He, along with my ex-guild master Bob and my ex-guild members sent some lovely gifts to me and the baby. Ivana got me a little white stuffed puppy, Jenny and the Trimen delivered me a perfume gift basket and some new baby clothes, and Bob got a set of bibs for the baby to wear when I would feed him or her."

"Well, that was nice of them. Now if you excuse me, Sloane, I have to run the bath now. I've been through the mission long enough to drain my physical and magical energies."

"Alright, dear. I'll add the lavender scent so you can bask in the soothing fragrance."

Laxus headed out of the nursery first, with his wife waddling after him. Lepus tagged along as well, sauntering alongside her owner to the Dreyars' master bedroom. Then, he opened up the bathroom door and turned one of the faucets to the left to turn on the warm water. Sloane emerged into the bathroom with a half-full half-empty bottle of the lavender fragrance and poured a small dose of it into the running water. She then placed a stack of white clean towels on a stool next to the bathtub and turned to leave the room.

"Wait, Sloane," Laxus said to her, forcing her to pause and turn to him. "Thanks for the towels and lavender. Now go ahead and rest… and don't forget our dinner."

"No worries," Sloane replied with a small smile. "I'll be sure to get the stove and oven ready first, and I'll take my time to rest before the water for the pasta would come to a boil. For now, just enjoy your bath."

After she closed the door behind her, Sloane exited the master bedroom with Lepus following close behind her and they descend the stairway into the living room. It didn't take long for the mother-to-be to start up the stove and place a large pot of water on there. The water would start boiling after twenty minutes or so, so Sloane decided to use that time to rest on the sofa alongside Lepus. Her head was leaning back against the propped up cushions and her legs were laying toward the sofa's left arm, whereas her right arm was around Lepus's body and she placed her left hand on top of her bump.

"Ohh, Lepus," she said to the rabbit. "It's tiresome for me being like this… Both Laxus and I adore this baby and we're longing to see him or her next week. It won't be long before you get to have a playmate other than Lucy's little critter Plue or any of the three felines."

Lepus nodded to her owner and observed Sloane's hand stroking her bump again. This time, however, the child wasn't as active as it was before and it had returned to its relaxed state.

"The baby's settled down for now, but I think that it'd kick up a storm again when I'll be sleeping. Other than that, I appreciate your support and your willingness to accept the baby as a part of this family. You're being a good spirit, Lepus."

Lepus gave her master a big smile in response to the compliment, just before letting out a tired yawn. She was just about to reach her limit and bedtime was calling to her.

"Alright, Lepus, I'll close your gate so you can rest in the spirit world. I'll call you again tomorrow," Sloane said, as she took out the silver Gate of the Hare key. Lepus gave her a small farewell wave with her left paw as the key shimmered a white aura.

"Closing, Gate of the Hare."

With these magic words said, Lepus disappeared in a puff of pink smoke and Sloane waved goodbye to it. As she let out a contented sigh and got herself comfortable on the sofa, Sloane wondered what it would be like for her to see Lepus playing with her baby. She assumed that it would be a delightful sight not only for herself, but also the Exceeds Happy, Carla and Panther Lily. Her husband wouldn't mind it at all, however, as he would focus on balancing missions with caring for their child. Regardless of the obstacles that they may face during their first year of marriage and parenthood, Sloane and Laxus would always be willing to do their best raising the child together… alongside Lepus.

The End

Any thoughts on this story? Do you believe Sloane and Laxus will do well as first-time parents? Let me know what you think!

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