Parenthood

Chapter 11

"Have fun?"

Laxus frowned, coming further into the apartment, having not expected anyone to be up. It was nearly midnight, after all, and he'd been gone since that morning. "What are you talking about, demon?"

She only sat there on the couch, strumming softly on her guitar. Laxus could see Nathan in his playpen, already asleep. It was rather late.

"You went on a date, didn't you?"

Grunt. He locked the door behind him before going over to the couch.

"I don't date," he said simply, patting her on the head. "I just fuck."

She frowned at that, more from the pat than the words, watching as he headed to his bedroom. A few minutes later, he returned wearing only a pair of jeans, his Sound Pod in hand.

"Here." He sat down on the couch with her before moving to latch one of his headphones onto her ear. Mira dodged him though.

"Wha-"

"Here," he insisted as they sat there in the darkness, moving to try again. Sitting very still, Mirajane let him. Not a moment later, she heard a song playing.

"What do you want me-"

"Can you play that?"

She blinked. Then she glanced at him. "I think so. I'd have to listen to it some."

"'kay. I gotta get something to eat anyhow and then shower." He got up once more before walking away. "Learn to play it before I get back."

She only stared after him for a moment before shaking her head. If he wanted her to play the dang song, fine. She always liked learning something new anyhow.

He took his time getting back to her. And when he did, he only said, "C'mon. Don't want to wake the kid."

Slowly, as if unsure, Mirajane got to her feet before heading after him, taking her acoustic and his Sound Pod along.

"Would you play better sitting in the chair?" Laxus asked as they made it to his room. "Or- Oh, So you just gonna take the bed without asking."

"Mmmhmm," she said as she sat with her legs crossed there, in the center of it. "Unless you wanna fight me for it, dragon."

"No thanks," he grumbled before going to grab his desk chair and drag it over, right next to the bed. The, after taking a seat, he nodded at her. "Play."

Mira felt kinda awkward, honestly. Then again, given the way Laxus was sitting, staring so hard at her, and the fact that she was on his bed, that was sort of a given. She felt like she was about to strip for him or something…

But she couldn't very well back out then. She'd have to site her reasons if she did and, considering they all centered around him possibly having lured her in there to sleep with him, well, she just didn't think she'd be able to say those words aloud.

"It's actually pretty simple," she told him. "The chord progression. And the picking part-"

"Don't like the mechanics, Mira, just like the end product."

She smiled slightly at him then, but he only hunched forwards in his chair, waiting.

When she started to strum, he sat back some, shutting his eyes.

"Sing it."

"I don't know the words, Laxus," she told him.

"I thought I told you to listen to-"

"I did listen to it," she insisted. "But I wasn't paying attention to the words."

Grunt.

Then, slowly, she said, "You sing it."

Snort. "Shut up, Mira."

"Sing it for me, Laxus."

"No."

"I'm playing it for you," she told him. "Just for you. You think you'd be a little more appreciative."

"Me? Appreciate this?" Snort. "You know, I'm actually helping you, demon."

She stopped playing then, just staring over at him. "Oh yeah?"

"Yeah."

"How?"

"I'm expanding your taste in music. Getting you into real music. Not that garbage you play."

"Oh, whatever. You love my music."

"I do not."

"Do too."

"No, Mirajane, I don't."

"Explains why whenever I play up at the guild your headphones magically find their way off your ears."

He peeked his eyes open. "You keeping tabs on me, demon?'

"No."

"Then how'd you know that-"

"Because you just told me, Laxus."

Grunt. Shutting his eyes again, he said, "I just think that…you know."

"I clearly don't."

"I think that you have a nice voice," he said then, rather gruffly. "So-"

"Aw. I think you have a pretty voice too, Laxus."

He'd have rolled his eyes, had they been open. Instead, he only said, "Play it again."

So she did. And he only relaxed even more. Enough so that, about the fifth time she played the song, he did start singing slightly. Mirajane only smiled and didn't make a comment on it, if only to keep him from getting embarrassed and putting a stop to it.

She found herself growing tired of that one song though and, eventually, shifted into playing her own music. Laxus didn't say a word, he only sat there, eyes shut, listening to her. Eventually, when she got to the end of one song, she didn't start again. She just sat there for a moment, fingers poised to begin again, awaiting Laxus' reaction.

Nothing. Mira held down a giggle. He was sleeping, head tilted back to the side with his mouth just open slightly. She thought that maybe she could even hear a feint snore coming from him.

"Goodnight, Laxus," she whispered as she quietly exited the room. Once she was back in the living room, she let herself have a little laugh.

Who knew that he would be so much like his son?

"Just gotta sing to them a little and they're out," she sighed as she went to rest her guitar against the side of the couch before laying down herself. Honestly, since she'd taken up working at the guild again as well as helping babysit Nathan, she'd been rather tired most of the time. No more than usual. Just went to show her how restful she'd be when Laxus finally did get Nathan a home.

"Making some great money though," she reminded herself slightly as she curled up. It wasn't until right then that she realized she had left the blanket she usually slept with over on the floor, laid out still from earlier in the day when Nathan had played on it.

"Oh well," she sighed, curling up tightly. She was too sleepy go get up just for a silly little blanket. "Maybe in a minute."

But that minute didn't come. She fell right to sleep and slept right through the night.

"-why she buy sausage when she knows that I want bacon," Laxus was grumbling as he dug through the fridge, looking for his coveted breakfast food. "Don't know who she thinks she is. Stupid demon."

He was in there, trying to start some breakfast, when he heard the little boy start up in the other room, whining about wanting out of his playpen. Grumbling then, he just pulled the sausage out of the fridge before tossing it on the counter and heading to go free him.

"You gotta be quiet," he told his son as he lifted him up. "Or learn to let yourself out. Seriously, kid, I thought that you would figure it out by now."

"Mira," he complained, pointing over at her still snoozing on the couch.

"She don't work this morning," he sighed as he carried his son off with him into the kitchen. "So shut the fuck up and let her sleep, huh?"

Nathan only took to laying against his shirtless father, slightly annoyed that Mira wasn't up to play with. Laxus was okay though. He guessed.

So it was to the smell of frying bacon (he'd finally found it hidden behind a carton of milk) that Mira woke up. And for a moment, she only laid there, breathing deeply, confused as to where she was.

When she realized, it wasn't so much her surroundings, but rather what was laid over her that caused her problems.

She sniffed it. Then she made a face.

"You could stand to wash this thing," was the first thing she said to Laxus as she came into the kitchen, his usual coat draped over her shoulders. She was more or less wearing it to annoy and/or embarrass him for leaving it over her. He didn't seem to care though.

"Then wash it," he grumbled. "What do you think I'm paying you for? Don't make breakfast, don't wash the things I want-"

"I was doing all those things out of courtesy, Laxus. I'm really only supposed to take care of Nathan."

Grunt. "Another thing I'm having to do right now."

"Well, you could have woken me," she said simply as the little boy, who was still in his father's arms, began to reach out for her. "I mean, honestly."

"You were sleeping," he said as she took the toddler from him.

"Hi," Nathan greeted Mirajane as she only pressed a kiss to his head.

"Were you making me breakfast too?" she asked his father. He only grunted.

"Laxus takes such good care of us, Nathan," she said as she went to go get the toddler something to drink. "He might be careful. We may just decide to move in."

Mira was still wearing his damn coat too, when they sat down to eat. Laxus only narrowed his eyes at the sight.

"I'mma need that back soon, Mirajane."

"Why? I was going to wear it down to the guildhall."

"Just for that, I'm gonna make you."

"Make me?"

He only snorted. "You thought that it was bad before, imagine it now. You coming round wearing my shit."

Blushing, she merely said, "Don't curse in front of the baby."

Snort. "Admit it. You like wearing my stuff."

"Laxus, behave."

He only let out a slow breath. "Whatever, Mira. I really don't want you wearing it out either. I already got women asking questions about you."

"About me?"

"Mostly ones that've seen you out with Nathan. They think…you know, that me and you are… That we have a kid together."

"What do you tell them?" she asked slowly.

"That it's my kid, but not from you. They know his mother anyhow," he said with a shrug. "Or they did. Before she took off."

Then he paused.

"You know what's funny?"

"What?"

"I didn't even realize, you know, that I hadn't seen her in two years until she showed up that day at the guildhall, with the kid." He snickered then. "I bet that she hoped that whole time that I would. That I notice that she wasn't around anymore. That I would somehow realize that she'd left Magnolia and go looking for her. Stupid bitch."

And just like that. It was so simple. She was glad too. It was the one flaw in the idea that she could ever be with him. Because even when they were having a perfect morning, he said something as disgusting as that and ruined it.

He was still laughing too. "She wasn't even that important to me, really. I only… She was friends with one of my other girls. One that I see all the time, yeah? One that gets what the deal is. That-"

"How many kids do you have?" Mira asked, her stomach coiling up.

"None. I mean, this one, but-"

"That you know of," she said then, frowning at him. Slipping off the coat then, she got to her feet, taking Nathan with her.

"I gotta bathe the baby and get down to the guild," she said simply. He could hear it too, the difference in her tone, see the way her posture had changed.

Snort. Like he cared. He was so tired of everyone hating him for being himself. He'd always been that way. Why was it suddenly so shocking? Such a big deal?

"Don't need no woman," he grumbled as he reached out to grab the bacon off her plate. "So she better not start to feel special. Stupid demon."

She wasn't though, as she sat at the side of the tub, scrubbing Nathan up after he'd gotten himself covered in syrup. She wasn't feeling special at all. In fact, Mirajane was feeling a little sick to her stomach.

"He's so revolting," Mirajane mumbled to Nathan who was only trying to play with some of the bath toys she'd bought him. "About everything. Who talks like that? It's sick. He makes me sick. He- Nathan."

He only splashed her again. "Mira."

Leaning down, she pressed a kiss to his head with sigh. Then, against his head, she whispered, "You have to get far away from here, huh? Away from him. I love you too much to let him have anything to do with you. I can't believe that your mother brought you to him, of all people. You'd be better off with a Gorian than you are with your father."

He only patted her cheek with his soapy hand. "Kiss."

She gave him another one. "I wish I could keep you, but that still wouldn't be far enough away. Maybe you should even leave Fiore. You need to be somewhere he and your grandfather can't get you. I only wish that Master understood that."

"Please, Mirajane? We won't lose him or anything. Carla will be with us!"

"Yeah," Romeo said, nodding his head. "And Happy."

She gave them a look. "You had me at Carla. And then lost me with Happy."

"Well… Natsu's not coming, if that helps any," Wendy said.

"It does, actually," she sighed as she continued to wipe down the bar. "But watch him, alright? And be back in two hours or so, okay? Here's his diaper bag."

"That was easy," Lisanna remarked after Mirajane handed over the child to the two teens and they ran off him with him. Nathan had taken a rather strong liking to Wendy, honestly and though he seemed to annoy Carla, Mirajane knew that the cat would protect him the same as anyone else. "And Laxus doesn't even know that you sent him off with them, so you still get paid."

Mirajane only rolled her eyes at her sister. "He'll throw a fit before they ever get to the park and they'll come running back with him. Either that or they won't want to watch him anymore and take him back. Two hours was just to make them feel like I'm putting faith in them."

"You're not?"

She only went back to wiping down the bar. "We'll just see how things go, huh?"

Just as Mirajane had suggested, they never made it to the park. Mainly because on the way there, they ran into someone.

"Laxus," Nathan announced from Romeo's shoulders, where he was riding. They were passing the man on the street as he walked along with some woman. At the sight, Wendy frowned.

"What are you losers doing with the kid?" Laxus asking, coming over to them with the woman. She only stared down at him in interest.

"So this is your son, huh?" she asked. "I'd heard about him, but-"

"Shut the fuck up," he grumbled as Happy tried to dive for cover in an alley way. "I saw you cat! Is the Salamander here too? I told Mira that I didn't want-"

"No," Romeo said, giving him a bored look. "We were just taking him to the park. It's not that big of deal, okay?"

Growling then, he reached out to snatch his son from the teen's shoulders.

"Hey!"

"Mira said-"

"Mira ain't here," he told them both gruffly. "And since you losers thought it was funny to be dicks to me, you don't get him. Now scram."

"Laxus," Wendy complained, frowning at him.

"You could have had him," he said. "Before your boyfriend here started-"

"I assure you," Carla began as Wendy blushed and Romeo only folded his arms above his head, whistling slightly, "that they are nothing of the sort."

"Don't care. You lost the kid," he said before waiting for one of them to hand him his diaper bag, which he only shoved at the woman he was with. Then he walked off.

"What's his name?" the woman asked as Nathan waved over Laxus' shoulder at the others. He really had wanted to go to the park. "Laxus?"

Grunt.

"Can I hold him?"

He glanced at her before back at his son. Something told him that Mirajane wouldn't like that.

But he wasn't Mira's. He belonged to Laxus. And he could give him to wherever he wanted.

Still though, something just would feel wrong about letting one of his other women hold him. Mira really-

Other? Ha ha. He meant…but…

"No," he told her gruffly. "Just shut up."

"Are we still going to-"

"I said to shut up, didn't I?"

"Firsty," the little boy told his father. Grumbling, he told the woman to hand him his sippy cup.

"I thought someone said that you were getting rid of him?" she asked then, for some reasoning not getting what shut up meant. And if she didn't give the best blows out of all the women he fucked, he might have just sent her off.

"What business is it of yours?" He bounced Nathan some as the woman handed him the cup. "Now I just gotta do something with it." He'd taken him on an impulse and honestly, if his pride wasn't so big, he'd go find Romeo and Wendy so they could have him once more. He was trying to figure out how to do that without coming off as remorseful ('cause he wasn't), when he realized where they were. "Ever."

Her apartment was closer than the guildhall at that point. Not to mention, Laxus really didn't want to walk in there with another woman. Again, he didn't think Mira would-

Gah! Why was he so worried about her feelings anyhow?

"Laxus," Evergreen greeted when they showed up on her doorstep a few minutes later. "Hi. Did you come to-"

"Take this." Then he shoved Nathan off on her. Reaching over to the woman he was with, he grabbed the diaper bag. "And this."

"What? Where's Mira?"

He only stared at her. "If he dies, she might kill us all. So don't kill it, alright?"

With that, he took the woman's arm again and started off. Ever only looked down at the child in her arms before frowning.

"Who was that, Ever?" she heard from behind her as Elfman came out of the bathroom. When she closed the door and turned, he saw the baby. "Was it Mirajane? Lisanna?"

"No," she said slowly, coming over to him. She dropped the diaper bag before holding the child out at arms length. "Here, take it."

'What?" He did so with a frown. "Ever-"

"Well, I don't want it," she said before rushing off to wash her hands. "Why would he come to give me him?"

"Maybe we're supposed to take him to Mirajane? I don't know. What did he say?"

"He just gave me the baby, said not to kill it, and took off with some woman."

"Some woman, huh?" Elfman frowned before looking down at the child. Nathan only smiled up at him.

"If."

"If what?" he asked it.

"If."

"If what?"

"If."

"If wh-"

"He's saying your damn name, stupid," Ever groaned from the bathroom.

"Hey, how was I supposed to know that? I'm not stupid, Evergreen."

"Whatever, I don't care." She came back to him then, all clean once more. "Just take it out of my apartment before it does something…gross."

At that, as if on cue, he dropped his sippy cup and let out a long burp.

"Whoa," Elfman said. "That was super manly!"

"Get out of here!" Ever held her nose. "Now. Before he poops or something."

"Don't take too much offense to this," Elfman told the toddler as they set off for the guildhall, Nathan walking along next to him while holding onto the man's jeans. "Even I can't burp in there. Much less poop."

"Potty."

"Yeah, kid, that's what we're- Ah, no. Seriously?"

So after that pretty unsuccessful adventure in changing a diaper (it was horrible, FYI), Elfman arrived at the guildhall with a giggly toddler.

"What's wrong with you?" Lisanna asked as he came to drop the child down in front of the bar. "You look-"

'If he can tell you that he's going, why couldn't he just hold it until we got to a bathroom?" he grumbled as his younger sister only giggled. Mira, who was behind the bar, rolled her eyes.

"He's not potty trained yet," she said. "And why do you have him anyways?"

"I dunno. Laxus showed up at Ever's with him. I don't know why he-"

"Wendy and Romeo already reported on that one," Mirajane said, nodding over at the teens, who after losing the child, had come back to find something more fun to waste time at. "Why didn't you and Evergreen just keep him?"

"Ever doesn't even like me in her apartment," he said as he lifted the child up one more time, though that was just to give him to Mirajane. At the sight of her, he giggled and gave her a kiss.

"So really, he just spent the past however long doing absolutely nothing fun after being promised to be taken to the park." Mirajane only bounced him in her arms. "Great."

"I can take him, Mira," Lisanna offered. "I'm so bored anyways. Lucy and Natsu pawned Happy off on Wendy and then went on a date. It's like they don't even think about me and him and our feelings."

"I know," Happy complained as he came over to land on Lisanna's head. "If we had dates, we'd both consult with them first. Huh, Lisanna?"

"That's right."

Mira only looked down at Nathan who'd taken to snuggling against her. "I think he's done for the day, guys. Besides, I'm leaving at the start of the night shift, Lisanna, and you're taking over."

"That's what I was hoping you'd forget."

When Mira took off that night for home, it was with Nathan already fed and just ready to be put to bed. In fact, he fell asleep without her even having to sing for him. Just went right to sleep.

She'd only finished with him a moment before Laxus came walking into the door. At the sight of her, he literally grinned, no doubt thinking that they were on good terms.

"Hey, listen to this." He unlatched a headphone and came over to her. "Can you play me-"

"Have you looked into anyone today?" Mirajane asked him instead.

"Looked into?"

"Someone taking the baby," she said. "I mean, you didn't do anything today, but what? Go on a date, according to Wendy and Romeo."

"I told you, I don't date. I-"

"Laxus."

He only stared at her before frowning. "I'm dealing with it, alright? Now listen to this. And did you make me any dinner? I-"

"We're not talking about that right now."

Blinking, he said, "I'm taking care of it, demon. Just listen to this. And the words. I want you to play it for me."

She wanted to argue with him. To tell him no. She wasn't there to be his friend or his maid or his chef. Originally, she wasn't even going to stay more than a week.

So when did she become all of those? Huh?

She wasn't sure. But she did know that when they wound up in his room later, her playing her guitar for him yet again until he passed out, a little tipsy that time, that she didn't wholly hate it.

But she hated herself for falling for it. All of it. She was a demon. The demon. She should have been stronger.

Why wasn't she stronger?