Gray's POV

Damn kid.

He was too much like me, and honestly, it freaked me out. I wanted to deny it when I first saw him, because in my mind, it was too ridiculous to think Juvia and I actually stayed together this long to have one. True, we were together, but we made a deal to keep our affair a secret. Juvia of course, couldn't help but ogle at me every second of every day. I tried to ignore her when we first met, but she was beautiful. A little over bearing, but she was beautiful nonetheless. And mine.

We have been dating in secret for a year now. Sometimes I would slip up and let my feelings show, and Juvia would notice immediately and start asking about our honeymoon or how many kids we'd have. I didn't want the guild to know about us. Not yet anyways, but now the kid was here and whatever plans I had had were now blown.

At least he wasn't afraid to express his love. Even if I didn't agree with him being head over heels for flame breath's girl, I had to admire his determination to be with her. It was just like Juvia's. That in itself was why I had agreed to be together for a few days while Jay was here. I wanted to see more of how this kid operated, how he could be so much like me, but unafraid and unashamed of how he felt. I wanted to be more like him.

We were sitting in my house since we couldn't go to Fairy Hills. Juvia was in the kitchen preparing a meal, while Jay and I sat on the couch, watching the Lacrima. "All of these shows are boring," he complained, folding his hands behind his head. "I can't believe you used to watch this crap. At least ten years from now, we'll have something in common."

"We have everything in common now," I commented.

"No way," he argued. "You're up tight and boring. I'm at least cool."

"He says with no clothes on." I looked down and realized mine were suddenly missing too.

"What the—" we yelled in unison, jumping off the couch and looking around for some kind of apparel.

"Gray, Jay, dinner is—" Juvia sang as she waltzed through the living room door. She held a pan of food in her hands, but when she saw our clothes missing, she dropped it onto the floor. Her face turned crimson, and she almost fainted. She started to fall, but I leaped and caught her in my arms. She sighed contently until she realized I still didn't have any clothes on. She screamed. I screamed. We all screamed.

"Ice cream!" Jay munched into his chocolate swirl, while Juvia and I watched from the kitchen. Since the dinner was ruined, we decided it was ice cream only tonight which sounded better than anything Juvia had cooked. I don't know what she put inside her casserole but cleaning it up had been a nightmare. Usually, I was the one who made dinner, but she had insisted that if we were parents, she was the one who had to learn to cook.

Jay sat on the couch again, but this time he was clothed. Juvia and I shut the kitchen door when we knew he was content so that we could talk in private. "Gray-sama, Juvia thinks being a parent is a great idea," she confessed, a light blush on her cheeks. "I think that maybe we should finally tell the guild about us."

I sighed and pulled her into a close embrace. "I think you're right." She gasped at my words, and I moved her back to look into her eyes. They sparkled with wonder and enthusiasm. "It's time to end this secret, since everyone knows now." I kissed her forehead. "Besides, I thinking making a kid would be a great idea too."

Her blush returned in full force. "Oh, Gray-sama!" She jumped forward, and pulled me closer into a deep kiss. I was surprised at first, but then I closed my eyes and sank into her. My arms wrapped around her waist, and she tangled her fingers into my hair. My lips left hers as I worked my way down her jaw, slowly kissing her throat. She moaned and whispered my name. I pushed her onto the kitchen table, my hands struggling to get rid of her shirt. My clothes nearly disappeared all the time, but when I actually tried to remove hers, it came off achingly slow.

"Damn this button!" I growled into her throat.

A chuckle bubbled from the door, and we froze. "So this is how I'm conceived?" Jay asked, continuing to laugh at our embarrassed state. "Don't stop on my account. I mean, you did make the perfect child after all." He placed his bowl of ice cream into the sink and waved just as he walked back through the door.

Juvia slipped off the table, and straightened her shirt. I looked away, still feeling ashamed about being caught in such an act. It's like being caught at the guild with everyone watching. Reading my mood, Juvia placed her hands on my chest, and I looked back at her. "Don't worry, Gray-sama. Juvia is right here with you."

I relaxed and embraced her closely again. "And, I'll always be here with you."

Evergreen's POV

Jane cried and cried, but Mira and I could never figure out why. Mira tried singing, and it worked for a little while, but then she only started again. I tried to hold her, but every time I got close, she sent a bolt of electricity at me. Elfman and Lisanna had decided to stay at their house for the night and get it ready for three more people. It was weird to have our affair exposed, but Mira and Lisanna seemed to already know about it. We had decided to stay at my place at Fairy Hills. The statues didn't even phase Mira or Ever.

Ever took Jane from Mira and started to rock her back and forth while singing a gentle song. For being so masculine like her father, she oddly had a soothing and beautiful voice. When the baby was asleep, she placed her in the crib that we had bought on the way home. Ever shut the door and met us in the living room where Mira had a cup of tea waiting for her. She uttered a thanks and sat down.

Looking at her felt surreal. I couldn't believe I had a daughter that had come from the future and was sitting in front of me. But that wasn't the real problem. "Why are you here?"

"Evergreen!" Mira chastised me for being so blunt.

Ignoring her, I stared into Ever's eyes and demanded the truth. "There is a reason you came seeking us. Scarlet mentioned that you were here to save us, but what does that mean?"

Ever took a long sip of her tea, and then sat it on the table. She curled her knees up to her chin and stared at the table for a while before she finally answered. "Scar made me promise not to tell just yet. It's not a story I can explain simply. We were never supposed to come in contact with our birth parents, but Nashi was the one who ran off and ruined the plan. I guess I can't blame her though. She hasn't seen her parents in over ten years."

"What happened to them?" Mira asked gently, noticing the way she shook uneasily.

Ever buried her head, mask the pain in her voice when she said, "Everyone is killed." Mira and I gasped and stared at each other, questions rolling through our minds that we feared to ask. "Some made it through," she suddenly mentioned. I released an unsteady breath and asked her about it. "It just depended. Gildarts, Master, and Laxus were the last one's I saw before walking through the portal. I'm not sure who else was left."

"What about your parents?" Mira asked for me.

Ever shook her head. "Evergreen was among the first that we lost." I nearly choked on my tea. I was going to die first? Fear cut through me like a knife, and it was suddenly too cramped in this large apartment. "But Daddy survived…kind of. He went mad after Mama was gone. I tried to make him smile, to remember that I was here with him. I changed my name and dyed my hair Mama's favorite color. It sorta worked. He did try harder, but sometimes he lost himself to the agony. He disappeared a month before we came here."

She changed everything just to make her father smile again? Tears filled my eyes, and I threw my arms around her. She stiffened at first, unsure of these emotions, but I could feel her fighting the sobs. When she finally let the tears fall, I pulled her into my arms and let her cry into my shoulder. Mira smiled at us, and I smiled back. I brushed Ever's hair, trying to soothe her. "I'm sorry," I finally said. "I'm sorry I couldn't be there for you in the future, but no matter whether I'm here or there, I'll always love you." She started to cry harder, and I hugged her tighter as my own tears started to fall. I promised myself that I would be here for her as long as I could.

Gajeel's POV

"C'mon Pops!" the boys complained. "You're too slow!"

Fucking kids always in a fucking rush. Did no one appreciate what was around them anymore? I heaved myself onto the rock, catching up to the boys. We had agreed at the guild to go camping on the cliff outside town, but they wanted to climb without using their magic. It wouldn't have been a problem if it weren't for the fact that Levy was holding onto my back. She had wanted to climb by herself, but I wasn't about to go save her ass if she wasn't strong enough and fell. I'd put her on my shoulders and started up the cliff.

Gale and Leevi raced ahead. They had made it to the top a few minutes ago, when I stopped to look at the moon. It was hauntingly beautiful the way it beamed silver rays to earth and the stars glittered against the black sky. Levy had caught me staring in wonder and smiled, reveling in the knowledge that I had a weakness. I ignored her and made the final climb to the top. The boys already had two tents pitched. But where was the third?

"Damn lazy kids don't even know how to count," I grumbled. I looked around for them, but they were nowhere to be found.

"I-I think that they are used to us sleeping together," Levy muttered sheepishly. "I mean. Where they're from, we are married after all."

I blushed. She was right, as always. They were probably used to us camping out, and us sharing a tent. I gulped audibly and turned away from her. "Well, I'm not sleeping in a tent with you. I'm going to stay outside."

"Like I'd want to sleep beside you anyways," Levy shot back. I turned around to look at her, but she wasn't paying me any attention. She was using script magic to create a fire. The ground erupted into flames, and I jumped back, confused by her amount of power. She sat down and tried to get warm.

Sighing, I sat beside her and put my arm around her shoulders. She shot me a bewildered look, and I shrugged. "Can't be having you catch a cold just because you agreed to the kids' idea," I suggested. She only returned her gaze to the fire.

The boys returned moments later, excited about some huge bug they caught for dinner. Levy "eeped" and refused to eat it. The boys and I laughed, but they released it anyways. For dinner, Levy used her script magic, and made each of us a block of iron. Leevi and I started chowing down, but Gale looked disgusted.

"I'm not like my brother. I don't eat iron like a pig," he complained.

Levy thought for a moment. "Well, then, what do you eat?" she asked.

Gale lifted his hands to the air and began sucking it in. Levy and I shot him a glare, and he shrugged. "Wendy thought that she wouldn't have time to continue her legacy because of one of Carla's predictions so she taught me sky dragon slayer magic."

"Turns out, Carla was right," Leevi added between munches of iron.

"What do you mean?" I asked. "Something happen to us?" Leevi and Gale stopped eating and shared a knowing look. They both shrugged then continued. Growing agitated, I jumped to my feet. "Hey! What happens?"

"Calm down, Pops," Gale complained.

"We were instructed by Scarlet not to mention anything," Leevi continued for him. "You'll find out tomorrow."

Levy begged me to sit down, and I listened to her, but I still did not like that they were hiding a secret like this. The boys stayed quiet after that for the rest of the night for the first time since they arrived. They fell asleep shortly after eating anyways, and I carried them to their tent. Levy helped wrap a warm blanket around them, and then left to extinguish the fire.

When she left, I sighed and watched the boys sleep. They were adorable and still small for their age, just like shrimp outside. It was exhausting having kids, but looking down on them, I couldn't hide the smile that the joy having them gave me. In a moment of weakness, I kissed their foreheads and left them in peace.

I bent back the tent flap and stepped outside. Levy was standing over the cliff's edge, watching the night sky. The way the moon cascaded down on her made my breath stop. She was always pretty when we were sitting around the guild talking, but now she was something more. She was beautiful. And she was the mother of my children.

Levy turned to meet my gaze, and she smiled softly and giggled. I looked away, not liking that I was caught. "Well…goodnight, I guess."

"Goodnight, shrimp," I replied, watching her disappear into the second tent out of the corner of my eye. When she was gone I sighed. Why was something so beautiful so far out of reach? I had always admired her since I joined the guild. At first I thought it was because I felt guilty for what I did to her when I was with Phantom, and I felt almost obligated to protect her. But after all the months I spent with her and our experience at Tenrou Island, I knew it was far more than just those trivial emotions.

That was what led me into her tent a minute later. I lied behind her back and put my arm around her waist. She sighed contently and placed her hand over mine. "I was hoping that you would come," she admitted quietly. I pulled her closer and buried my face in her soft hair. Her scent enraptured me, and it was the last thing I remembered before falling asleep next to her.