Chapter 5
Home for the Holidays 2019
Prompt: Limits
6:40 pm - 7:15 pm Members are encouraged to talk about any issues or share successes
"Alright, that was incredibly uhm, informational?" Gildarts muttered, "Anyway, on to my favorite part. For those of you joining us for the first time, this is the part of the meeting where we talk about what's going on with us. Any issues that we're facing or anything we managed that we're proud of. Keep it to kids/family stuff, I'm looking at you Wakaba, no one needs to hear more about your fights with Millgana."
"Let's start with the positive things first, does anyone have something good to share?" Macao asked even as he snickered at a man with a pompadour hairdo that Rogue could only assume was Wakaba.
One of the other dads got up from his seat, smiling widely. He had short dark hair and was wearing a blue t-shirt with the Magnolia Police Department logo. "It's my daughter Asuka's birthday today. She turned six and wanted to celebrate with you guys as well."
Upon hearing her name, Asuka left the play area and rushed to her father's side, "Is it cupcake time, daddy?" she asked, jumping up and down in excitement.
"Yes it is," he assured her, still smiling as he patted the top of her head through the cowboy hat she was wearing. He then addressed the rest of the group again, "We made cupcakes together to share with the club. It was a lot of fun, and they turned out great, Asuka even did all the decorating herself!"
They all took a moment to sing Happy Birthday to the excited little girl who beamed at being the center of attention. Father and daughter then retrieved a plastic tray that had been covered with foil from the snack area.
"Are there any more napkins?" the man asked, and Gildarts walked over to where there were still some market bags, quickly grabbing one and handing it to the father.
"That's great, Alzack!" Macao complimented as father and daughter wandered around the room offering cupcakes, "I think one of the challenges we often face as fathers is allowing ourselves to enjoy activities that are usually associated with women. Baking, tea parties, or playing with dolls, just to name a few. We need to remember these are just another part of our children's development. Giving them affection and support is much more important than any perceived affront to our masculinity."
Hearing Macao mention tea parties, Rogue couldn't help but remember the ones Gildarts and his father had forced on him and Gray when Cana had first shown up. She'd been so quiet and sad when they had first met her, and both men had tried their best to make her smile. To the point of wearing ridiculous outfits while sitting around holding conversations with dolls and holding the little cups from the tea set that had been a present from Rogue's mother in their large hands.
Rogue chuckled at the memory and searched out his brother, wanting to see if he'd had a similar reaction only to find Gray watching him as well, and for one instant, they shared a smile before Gray looked away.
"I'd love to do stuff like that," a man spoke up, drawing Rogue's attention to him. Unlike most of the other men there, he was dressed impeccably in a fitted suit, and for some reason, he chose to wear tinted sunglasses inside. His expression was sad as he accepted a cupcake from the little girl, but he still managed to offer her a smile, "Thank you, sweetheart."
"What's going on, Loke?" Gildarts asked, sitting in one of the empty chairs next to him.
"I barely get to see my girls anymore. They're usually asleep by the time I get home during the week, and now my wife has started taking them to her parents' summer house on the weekends."
"I get that, with my crazy schedule I don't get as much time as I'd like with the twins, so I try to plan something each week and just kind of grab any moment I can along the way, you know?"
Rogue knew Sting was just trying to be helpful, but something about Loke's body language made him think his situation was very different from theirs.
Gildarts leaned his head towards Loke, and they began speaking in quiet voices, Loke seeming more upset the more they talked.
Rogue looked away, feeling uncomfortable with watching when Loke seemed so unhappy. As his eyes wandered, he couldn't help but notice that his brother's companion was staring at Loke with a rather interesting expression on his face, seeming to Rogue to almost border on dislike.
Before he had a chance to wonder about it, Alzack and his daughter were standing in front of him and Sting, holding a tray still half-full of cupcakes. The little girl's eyes were hopeful, and Rogue could only gawk at her attempts at decoration. Each cupcake was slathered with pink frosting, a drawing of some kind done in white frosting on the top, although to him it looked like no more than a blob.
"Oh, wow! Those look great!" Sting grinned, always enthusiastic about anything having to do with food, "Can I have more than one?"
"Sting!" Rogue scolded, but the little girl only giggled as she handed his husband two cupcakes.
"You can have one too!" she handed Rogue a cupcake before moving on to the men sitting next
to them.
Rogue ate his cupcake before Sting could beg it off him, he had to admit it was pretty good.
Another man had spoken up about a problem he was having with his teenage son when Rogue heard someone say, "Wouldn't these have been more useful before you got here?" followed by a chorus of laughs.
Gray's companion was holding a box of condoms in his hand, and a quick glance at the impish grin on Gildarts' face and the way he was watching Macao for his reaction made Rogue realize this must have been the object he'd hidden earlier.
Macao, for his part, was frowning at Gildarts with what looked to be long-suffering exasperation, which seemed to be enough to set Gildarts off into a fit of mirth. It almost reminded Rogue of the way his dad would sometimes get when Gildarts was too much for him to handle. And he stopped that thought before it could gain any traction. Of all the hornet's nests that had been stirred that day, his father was the one he couldn't afford to dwell on.
7:15 pm - 7:30 pm Upcoming events or activities (signups)
"For now, we are still paper only, so there will be a clipboard available where you can sign up to bring an item or help plan an event. The old club used to do activities like picnics, potluck dinners around the holidays, stuff like that. We'd like to continue the tradition, so if you have any ideas of things you'd like us to try, don't be shy. As soon as Warren finishes, you should be able to just do it from your phone." Macao declared.
"Feel free to send Warren an email to encourage him to hurry up, his email is-" Macao teased as Warren yelled at him to shut up.
"As far as the snacks, we've decided to just charge a 500 jewel monthly fee rather than asking people to remember to bring stuff. Please make sure to list any allergies you or your children might have on your membership form. Gildarts and I will just buy snacks before every meeting. Everyone okay with that?"
No one complained, and they soon began discussing different possible activities both with the kids and dads only.
Rogue lost interest in the conversation, his eyes darting more and more to the play area. He observed Aki, hoping he could somehow glean the answers to all of his questions just from the way he acted.
Aki ran back to his father, sporting a bright smile on his face as he climbed back on his lap. Gray
hugged him, kissing his forehead and listening to whatever the little boy was telling him. The silver-haired man smiled at both of them, ruffling Aki's hair, which caused the little boy to frown at him, and it was such a perfect replica of Gray's frown that Rogue had to laugh.
There was a longing in him now to have Aki be a part of their lives and to rekindle the bond he'd once shared with Gray, back when things were simpler. He waited impatiently for the meeting to come to a close so that he could try to approach his brother. If nothing else to let him know he wanted to talk.
7:30pm Cleanup
"Alright, our time is up. We'd like to thank everyone for coming, we'll be here again next week. Please take a moment to help us clean up, and make sure to grab your kids on the way out!" Macao announced as Gildarts appeared with a large garbage bag.
The room once again became chaotic as everyone got up to help with the cleanup. Small groups formed blocking Rogue's view of Gray and his mysterious companion while others cluttered up the play area in search of their kids.
He finally caught a glimpse of them and without even a word of warning to Sting Rogue took off after them. He tried to get through the crowd to get to his brother, but he was stopped by an older man.
"Are you the journalist Macao was telling me about?" he stared up at Rogue, and though he was furious at the interruption, the man's kind smile made it impossible for him to snap at him.
Instead, he took a deep breath and held his hand out for the older man to shake, "Yes, my name is Rogue Eucliffe."
"Nice to meet you, I'm Makarov Dreyar."
For a man his age- and this short, he had to be under 4 feet tall- Makarov had a firm handshake. Whatever he had to say did not quite reach Rogue's ears. Instead, he was focusing on overhearing the conversation Gray was having with his companion.
"I told you this would be a waste of time," Gray grumbled as they walked towards the exit, a smiling Aki in his arms.
"I wouldn't say that. This was just as much for Aki as it was for you, and he seems to have enjoyed it immensely. Now, are you going to tell me what your deal is with that guy with the long black hair or what?"
The doors closed behind them, and Rogue felt his frustration grow as Makarov continued to talk to him, asking him questions about his family, which he tried to answer as politely as he could.
"Can you excuse me for just one minute?" Without waiting for a response, Rogue ran out the daycare center exit, down the long hallway and out the community center doors, but he saw no sign of them.
Damn it! How was he supposed to find him now?
With a heavy heart, he hurried back to the daycare center, feeling bad for acting so rudely towards the older man. When he entered, he was surprised to see Sting had already put both boys in the stroller and was talking to Gildarts, million watt smile at the ready.
"Put that away, son, you're liable to blind someone with that thing," Gildarts asserted, looking amused. "I've already told you, I can't give you any private information on any of our members. Would you like it if I just gave out the half-pint's number to anyone that asked?"
"But Gray is his brother," Sting protested, "You know that for a fact."
"I do, still doesn't change anything," Gildarts shrugged, "Listen, kid, I wish I could help you out, but my hands are tied. Now, if you were to ask me for information on his companion, that would be a different story."
"What?"
"He gave me business cards and permission to hand them out to anyone who might need one, but you didn't so-" Gildarts turned away, and Rogue wanted nothing more than to throttle him.
Same old Gildarts, always playing games, never taking anything seriously.
"Give me the damn card, Gildarts," Rogue growled, not in the mood to play along.
"Half-pint, you came back!"
Rogue rolled his eyes, grabbing the card Gildarts offered him and reading it hungrily. Lyon Vastia, Attorney at Reitei Family Law and a phone number. It wasn't what he'd hoped for, but it was something, a connection to Gray no matter how small.
"You talked to him, what did he say?" Rogue demanded, not even bothering to disguise how important the information was to him.
Gildarts crossed his arms "I'm not saying a word until you start talking. What the hell happened between you two? And don't you dare say nothing, I'm not stupid. I've witnessed sworn enemies act happier to see each other."
The last thing Rogue wanted to do was to rehash the events of the last six years with Gildarts, especially when he was already riled up. But Gildarts had always known how to push all his buttons and this time was no different. The man had been interrogated countless times by professionals and had never been broken, Rogue knew without a doubt Gildarts would not disclose anything until he came clean.
"Fine," Rogue accepted the terms, but when he opened his mouth to begin Gildarts stopped him.
"Not here." Gildarts turned to Sting, flashing him his own million watt smile that had wooed more women than any of them had ever been able to count. "Half-Pint's coming with me to FairyTail, assuming he's honest with me he shouldn't be home too late."
Sting looked like he wanted to protest but one look at Rogue's face was enough to silence him. Instead, he gave him a quick hug and whispered, "Good luck, I'll see you when you get home."
Home. Rogue held on to that word, it had been an empty one for so long, until Sting had come along and given it meaning again. No matter what came of his talk with Gildarts, knowing that he had a home to return to that was full of love and family gave him the strength to suffer through whatever the rest of the night had in store for him.
"That bastard!" Rogue ranted the second he made it through the door.
Sting shushed him, pointing at the door to the twins' room. "How much did you have to drink?"
Rogue blinked, trying to remember how many drinks Gildarts had shoved at him as they talked. He shrugged in response, he had no idea.
Sting snatched the baby monitor and the glass of wine he'd been drinking, leaving the other he'd obviously poured for Rogue behind. Grabbing him by the arm he gently led him outside, sitting both of them on the bench swing in their backyard.
"What happened?" Sting pushed his feet against the ground, rocking the swing back and forth slowly.
"I must have talked for hours, I told him everything and-" Rogue was once again filled with rage, "He didn't know anything, said he tried to get Gray to talk to him but failed."
Rogue wanted to scream, he felt like such an idiot. How was it that even after all these years Gildarts could still turn him into an insecure child? Gray would never have fallen for that.
He could feel Sting's eyes on him, even worse he could see the way he was trying hard not to laugh at him.
"That guy is something else," Sting chuckled with something akin to admiration, "Let me ask you this, outside of the anger you're obviously experiencing, do you feel any better?"
"What?"
"You heard me, you've been holding on to a lot of that stuff for years, I know it's been eating away at you. He might have been a dick, but he got you to talk about all of it, which is something you desperately needed."
Rogue had done more than that. Gildarts had always been a man of action. Given all the things he'd come to learn about there was no way he would be willing to stand on the sidelines while people he considered family were floundering about.
No, Rogue thought as he remembered how furious Gildarts had seemed upon hearing the events that had transpired while he'd been handling his own issues. He had unleashed Gildarts on all of them and with a sadistic grin, considering everything he'd gone through on his own, he realized he wasn't one bit sorry.
He laughed until tears streamed down his cheeks, the alcohol feeding into his hysteria, causing Sting to gaze at him with concern once again.
"You're right, it's going be fine," Rogue finally replied, wiping the tears from his eyes. He waited for Sting to put his glass down and snuggled into him, reveling in his warmth. They swung together for what felt like a long time, enjoying the silence after the chaos of the long evening.
Things were likely to get interesting in the coming weeks but for right now Rogue was at peace.