Response to chapter 414 so if you don't like SPOILERS, DONT READ. I waited until after I knew why Natsu is a dragon slayer to write this.

-sits in a corner and sobs-

Dreams

"Me gonna be dragon slayer, papa!"

When Natsu first heard this broken sentence from his five year old son, he about dropped the mug of fire whiskey he had in his hand. Making sure the mug hid his face away from Nashi's view, the pink haired man gulped down the now very bitter taste of liquor.

"Oh?" he asked in a light but forced tone, trying to keep the smile on lips as he shifts his weight on the wooden bench he is sitting on.

"Yeah! Like papa! Gonna be strong to protect you an mama!"

Already he can hear himself back when he was around five years old. Or was it seven? The memories were too painful somedays, so nostalgic.

'I'm gonna get stronger Igneel! Play with me some more!' Play back then meant fighting, because how else did a Dragon Slayer practice his slaying art?

Fighting against the tremble in his lips, Natsu forced a cheerful face as he lowered his mug to face his son and smooth down his wild, pink hair.

"Easy son. Don't rush to be strong. Never works out right."

Those brown eyes like his mother's blinked wide up at him, a small hand gently holding the silver scarf wound around his neck.

"Wanna be strong, papa!"

He needs to end this conversation. Now. Smirking down at his son, Natsu pointed over towards Gray's four year old daughter and Gajeel's six year old son with his mug.

"Strength takes practice. Why don't you go tug on Rayne's hair or ask Steele if he still gets scared of the dark? See what happens?"

He can feel Lucy at his back, her hand slipping under his scarf to press cool skin against the flesh of his neck. As soon as their son is at the other end of the guild, unknowingly starting a fight admist children, does he turn to face her, pressing his cheek against her belly. Closing his eyes, he just inhales her scent of flowers and the wild winds of outside. He doesn't cry, doesn't vent so much as remembers the past with his dragon Igneel, their bittersweet reunion, and the truth of what it meant to be a Dragon Slayer. All the while he fiddled with Lucy's skirt, needing something to tinker with.

"He wants to be a Dragon Slayer," he mumbles against her rib cage since she is standing by his side and he is sitting on one of the wooden benches at the guild, his mug of whiskey long forgotten.

"I know."

"I don't want him to go through what I did."

Soft fingers comb through his long spiky locks, the stubble at his chin scraping against the tightly woven cloth of her laced up shirt. Lucy glanced over at the pile of screaming children now tumbling across the guild floor, hair flying and teeth gnashing with young, innocent tempers.

"One day you will tell him but for now, let him dream."

Sighing heavily, Natsu leaned away from his wife but did not let go of her. He held onto her hip as she continued to fiddle with his scarf.

"Gajeel thinks the same thing. We will be the last ones. There are no more dragons after all."

Lucy tilted her head to the side, contemplating his words.

"Natsu..."

Shaking his head at her tone of pity, he stood to turn towards the direction of their son's fight.

"I'll be his father but better than Igneel ever was to me."

Smiling gently, she smoothed the scarf down his back.

"Yes you will."

Tension seemed to melt away from her husband's muscles as he let out a slow breathe. Winking at her over his shoulder, he engulfed his left hand in flames as he marched on over to where Gray and Gajeel were trying to pry their children off his son.

Lucy saw his favored right foot shift just as he lunged forward, smiling as she took his spot on the bench. Flawlessly, Natsu plucked their son from the fight just as the other children were also pulled away.

Stepping in front of his son, Natsu cracked his knuckles menacingly as the flames from his hand sparked out warningly at Gajeel and Gray. The other two men shifted their stances, warning their kids back with eager grins.

Gajeel cracked one hand, iron claws enlongating from silver, scaled skin. Gray cracked his neck, ice forming around his clenched fists.

"Your kid has balls, Natsu. Picking on my daughter like that," Gray grumbled, forming his Ice Make stance with a grim smile.

"Hey Nashi..."

The little boy wiped some snot away from his nose, shifting his glaring gaze from Steele to one of wonder at his old man.

"Watch how a thrashing is done. With no magic."

A tiny hand clenched onto his father's white pantleg where white cloth meets the brown leather of his boots.

"No magic?"

Natsu met the gazes of his two friends and they all share a mini nod at each other in agreement. No magic.

"Yeah. Before I used flames, I used my fists. Just like you did. Now watch as I win."

Nashi didn't understand, not yet. "But papa, magic-"

"Magic isn't everything!" Natsu growled sternly, shifting his stance as well, "Being strong doesn't always mean having the strongest magic spell or weapon. It means knowing the right thing to fight for. Now what am I trying to do?"

Looking up at his father's strong back, Nashi looked and looked until his narrowed brown eyes widened a little more.

Papa is protecting me.

The little boy didn't answer his father nor did Natsu wait for one, lunging forward and capturing the naked fists of Grey and Gajeel in each hand. All through the fight, Nashi didn't more but none of the three fighting men ever came close enough to actually harming him. The punches and kicks were strong but his papa sent many glancing blows that day. To Nashi's untrained eyes, his papa was merely playing with two of his best friends. But later on he will realize the twitching of his father's eyebrowns, the trembling fists that landed half hearted blows as Uncle Gray and Gajeel silently took one blow after another in a stress releasing tussle of silent communication to simply let off some grief filled steam.

All Nashi could think of was that his dream had only become even stronger.

I wanna be like papa.

Till the next one!