A/N: This is to the theme of 'parents' on akikorossella's deviantart. This is connected to the previous one-shot, Siblings, but back when Miles was a baby.

To be a Parent

"Wahhhh!"

Natsu winced, picking Miles up from the crib yet again. He had just set him down, thinking the baby was asleep when his eyes snapped back open with a loud wail. This baby just didn't want to sleep.

The father had tried everything. He sang – badly – to Miles, paced the room chatting up a storm, threw him up and down a couple times – something Lucy would have had a fit at – sat in the rocking chair for an hour. Why wouldn't the kid sleep?

Natsu was so unbelievably tired. Now he knew how Lucy felt, and this was the reason he was doing it in the first place. Lucy had gotten little to no sleep in the last month. She hardly had enough energy to even leave the house lately. Natsu felt terrible for it, so he insisted he take care of Miles for a bit while she slept.

Bad idea.

This was only his second night and he was ready to give up. Anyone who knew Natsu Dragneel knew he was not a man who gave up. Ever. So it would come as a surprise that a baby could make him do so.

"Come on, big guy, go to sleep for papa," Natsu cooed, smiling down at his son.

Miles gave another cry in response.

"What do you want?" Natsu moaned. "I've changed your diaper," he shuddered, "three times. You've had who knows how many bottles. I lost count after the third one."

He walked from the nursery into the living room, and over to the shelves with the pictures. Cradling Miles, carefully, in one arm, he picked up a photo of himself and Lucy. "Look, bud, there's mama and papa. That was taken at the guild, the day we found out you were in mama's belly. Oh man, that was a great day. You should have seen everyone's faces. Especially Gray's. I didn't know what to think though. I was gonna be a dad. Do you know how scary that was? The only dad I ever knew was a dragon!"

Natsu snickered. "Igneel's your grandfather. You'll meet him someday."

Miles gurgled a bit, his small fist reaching up to Natsu's face. Natsu grinned and caught his son's hand, marvelling for the millionth time at how little it was. "But it won't be little for long, will it," he said aloud. "You're gonna grow up to be strong and awesome just like me, right?" he laughed. "Wonder what magic you'll use?"

Miles grabbed Natsu's white scarf with his other hand and Natsu smiled. "Come on, Miles, let's try this again!" he headed back to the nursery, still murmuring to his son. He placed the baby into the crib and Miles reached up to the mobile of cats above him.

Natsu smiled and turned the mobile so it would play music, then sat in the rocking chair beside the crib. Miles turned his little head to look at him. "Go to sleep now, big guy."

The dragon slayer let his own head fall to the side, resting on the back of his chair and felt his eyes close. Finally, he thought. He could get some shuteye too. Miles had calmed down enough to go to –

"Wahhhh!"

Natsu groaned and stood back up. He reached into the crib and took his son into his arms. "What is it?" Natsu sang out. "Seriously, Miles. Why won't you go to sleep? Why can't babies talk! This would be easier if you could just tell me what you want!"

"Maybe you're just not listening," a voice said and a small blue cat with wings flew into the room.

"Happy!" Natsu greeted, grinning. "What are you doing up?"

The cat yawned, sitting on the edge of Miles' crib. "Who could sleep with him around?" Happy whined. "Why don't you just get Lucy?"

"No way!" Natsu said immediately. "I told her I could handle this, and I will."

"But Natsu, it's three in the morning and he's still wide awake!" Happy protested.

"Then I'm doing something wrong," Natsu decided. "Happy, what do babies want?"

The cat shrugged. "Fish?"

"I don't think so," Natsu shook his head solemnly. "He's not hungry. He doesn't need his diaper changed. I just don't get it!" he rubbed his pink hair with his free hand and stared down at his son. "I suck at this."

"No," the cat said. "I don't know what to do either. Face it, we need Lucy."

"What would Lucy do?" Natsu said to himself, remembering the times he'd come out in the middle of the night to see her with Miles. She sat in the rocking chair, told him stories and fed him bottles. Natsu had done all of that.

"Maybe Miles just likes Lucy better?" Happy suggested.

Natsu looked horrified. "Don't say that! Kids don't pick favourites. Do they?" Natsu was seriously worried. He didn't want his son to like Lucy better! Of course, he wouldn't blame Miles - Natsu liked Lucy a lot too - but he wanted Miles to like him better!

Happy snickered. "Sure they do!"

"What would you know?" Natsu grumbled, pouting. Miles gurgled again, playing with his father's scarf. The dragon slayer sighed, smiling involuntarily, "He's happy now."

"Aye," said Happy. "Maybe he just wants to be with you?"

This made Natsu smile more as he stared down at his son. "All right, big guy. Whatever…. makes you happy," Natsu said between a yawn.

Happy curled up in Mile's crib. Natsu began to tell Miles the story of how he and Lucy first met – again. Happy joined in once in a while with his own input.

"And then the giant mermaid blew both me and Lucy away too! Really, Miles, never make Aquarius mad! She holds grudges," Happy said seriously, his voice hoarse from lack of sleep.

The next time Natsu looked down at Miles, his son was asleep. Natsu knew for sure this time. His little chest was moving up and down slowly, evenly. Natsu smiled sleepily, and decided he was too tired to place Miles back in his crib. He closed his own eyes and fell asleep to the sound of both his sons' breathing.


Lucy gasped at the sight that met her eyes in the morning. Her husband was out cold in the rocking chair with his mouth open. He was snoring so loudly that she was surprised he didn't wake the baby sleeping in his arm.

Happy was curled on Natsu's leg, also fast asleep. Little Miles was snuggled comfortably in his father's arm. Lucy leaned against the doorframe for a moment, studying her little family with watery eyes.

She had heard Miles crying last night and it had taken everything she had not to go help Natsu. She'd come to check a couple times, staying out of sight and listening. She knew Natsu didn't want her help. He wanted to prove he could do this, so she let him.

And he did great.

She could hardly believe she was a mother. She had a son, and a husband. If only she could go back and tell her seventeen-year-old self the news…

With a small sigh of happiness, she shook herself from her thoughts and walked to her family. She carefully reached out to take Miles from Natsu but the dragon slayer woke up with a start, his arm wrapping protectively around his son before he realized it was only Lucy.

"Oh," he murmured tiredly. "G'morning Luce,"

She smiled, bending to kiss him. "Morning," she said. "How was it?"

Natsu sighed, staring down at the still sleeping Miles. "Well. Remember how I said raising Miles would be just as easy as raising Happy?"

Lucy nodded, remembering the conversation from back when she was still pregnant. She had very bluntly told Natsu how wrong he was.

"It's not. It isn't easy at all," Natsu snickered softly. "I have no idea what I'm doing, Luce."

She took Miles from him gently and set the baby in the crib before she responded. Running a finger down her son's cheek, she shook her head. "I don't either, Natsu. And I think," she turned to her husband again, "that that's part of what it means to be a parent."

Natsu smiled slowly, nodding in agreement – and relief at the fact that Lucy didn't know what she was doing either.

"Now," Lucy grinned, "how 'bout I make breakfast while you get some more sleep, hm?"

He grinned, picking up Happy and leaping up to hug and kiss his wife. "You're the best, Luce!"