Rumors in the Dark
There was a silence, as everyone in the guild stared at the grinning Natsu, and incredibly embarrassed Lucy. As it turned out, Mira was the first to talk. Well… using the term "talk" loosely.
"KYAH!' she cried loudly, before she collapsed to the ground, her eyes hearts.
"She fainted!" Lucy said. The guild then soon erupted into cheers.
"That's amazing Lu!" Levy said as she threw herself onto Lucy in a hug.
"Crap, I misread these," Cana said, looking at her cards, "They said those two would really bang next year."
"You made predictions about my sex life!" Lucy wailed.
"Wow, Natsu sure works fast," Macao said.
"Now I can be a big brother!" Romeo said excitedly.
"Natsu's a real man!" Elfman said, "As I'm sure his kid'll be!"
"It might be a girl, you know," Warren said.
"Juvia is really happy for you!" Juvia said happily. Since Lucy got together with Natsu, the two girls had become quite good friends. And Lucy was quite thankful to not have Juvia constantly accusing her of being a "love rival".
"You know if you ever want a puppet show for your kid, I'm here," Bixlow said, "My babies can put on quite a show!"
"Show! Show! Show!" Meanwhile, Erza paused, and looked at Lucy, as she began to turn red.
"Natsu!" Erza roared as she pounced him on like a lion. The Dragon Slayer didn't even have time to react as Erza had him pinned.
"How could you have done this to Lucy!" she demanded, "You stole her innocence!" Apparently it finally hit her that Lucy was pregnant.
"Erza!" Lucy said quickly, waving her hands, "Its okay, I went along with it!" Erza then jumped up to Lucy, as she looked over her.
" As people crowded around Natsu and Lucy, the blonde couldn't help but smile at all that. She was happy to know she had so many friends around her.
"What're you getting so excited about?" Klodoa asked, as he jumped onto the counter, "Its just a lame kid!"
"Shut up you!" Happy said as he kicked the staff in the jaw.
"Piss off you stupid cat!" Klodoa snapped.
"Why do we still have him around?" Alzack asked.
"He just seems to be a big loudmouth," Bisca noted.
"Well, the alternative is let him roam free, since the Magic Council apparently won't take him," Makarov said, "So I hate to say it, but we've got no choice but to keep an eye on him ourselves."
"So now we're saddled with this guy?" Max said, "Oh joy."
"Don't forget I'm of the Oracion Seis!" Klodoa said, "And you will fear me!" Instead of anybody "fearing" him, he was rather promptly grabbed, and locked in the closet.
"We now have four new members to welcome!" Makarov proclaimed, raising his mug in pride, "Wendy, Carla, Kinana, and now Natsu and Lucy's child! Let us drink!" Lucy laughed at that, as the guild started to celebrate.
"Wow, Fairy Tail sure is exciting," Wendy said.
"I'm not entirely impressed," Carla said, "And this might become annoying later."
"So what kind of magic do you use?" Laki asked.
"Oh, well I use Healing Magic, I'm the Sky Dragon Slayer," Wendy explained. The people who had asked the question stared at her in surprise, before everyone erupted in excitement.
"Now we've got three Dragon Slayers!" Reedus said.
"How many guilds get to brag about that?" Warren asked.
"We're practically invincible like this!" Vijeeter said. Wendy couldn't help but smile at all this going around her.
"During all this, Gajeel watched from upstairs. He looked at Happy, then at Carla.
"All the Dragon Slayers have cats," he mused, "Why don't I have a cat?"
(the next day, at Lucy's house)
"Damn!" the landlady grumbled as she stomped up the stairs, "That girl's late on rent again!" She banged on door.
"Child!" she bellowed, "Come out this instant! You owe me rent!" There was no answer. Not the most patience of women, the landlady promptly kicked the door down.
"Now girl….," she stopped when she saw everything. There were boxes all around, and the room was looking strangely empty.
"Oh, hello!" Lucy said politely as she came out of the bathroom, smiling.
"What's going on here?" the landlady asked, "Where's the rent?"
"Oh, I'm moving out," Lucy said, still smiling.
"You are?" the landlady asked in surprise. She knew that the girl was often tight on money, so she tried to be reasonable on the rent. But if she was moving out…
"Did you find a cheaper place?"
"In a way, yes," Lucy said, as she put another book in a box, before turning, and grinning bright, "I'm moving in with my boyfriend!"
"Your boyfriend?" the landlady asked.
"That's what she said!" Natsu said, as he jumped into the window.
"You're that boy who is always breaking things!" the landlady said angrily, "Get out of here!"
"Don't worry, we're both in the progress of that," Lucy said, as she handed Natsu a box, who handed it off to Happy. Natsu then jumped in, and picked up several boxes on his own, not showing any strain.
"Why this all of a sudden?"
"I'm pregnant," Lucy answered, patting her stomach, "And I'd like to be with the baby's father." Natsu smiled.
"And I ain't letting Lucy out of my sight until she has the baby!" he said proudly. Lucy grinned, and kissed him on the cheek. The landlady smiled at that.
"Normally I'd ask for this month's rent anyway, but how can I do that to a mother to be?" she asked. Lucy paused, before smiling big.
"Thank you, ma'am!" she said, "That means a lot!"
Eventually, the group had gotten out all the boxes, and were now heading to Natsu's house. He was carrying most of them on his back, while Lucy dragged her suitcase behind her. Happy hugged her stomach.
"I'm going to teach you all about fish!" he said to the unborn child, "You and I will go fishing in the lake, and the ocean, and…"
"I think I should raise him on more than fish," Lucy said, smiling.
"But fish solves everything!" Happy said. The couple chuckled at that. Lucy had initially been hesitant about moving in permanently with Natsu. True, she loved him deeply, but it was still a big change of pace.
"Wendy should be coming too!" Natsu said, pouting, "She's my little sister!" Wendy and Carla had instead opted to move into the girls dorm, much to Natsu's disappointment.
"Well, you can't cling onto Wendy like that," Lucy said, "Besides from what I've heard, your house is pretty small." As it turned out, Lucy was correct, when they arrived at Natsu's house.
"Alright, now let's get everything moved in," Natsu said, as he kicked open the door. Lucy stuck her head, as she looked around. Looking over Natsu's house, she was immediately starting to regret choosing to live with him. To call it messy would be call to Natsu's dragon fire "kinda warm".
"This house needs more than a woman's touch," Lucy said, as she cracked her knuckles.
(two months later)
Overtime, one person overheard someone from Fairy Tail commenting about Lucy, and another person heard it from them, and so on. Word was beginning to spread that Salamander of Fairy Tail not only had a a girlfriend, but that girlfriend had a son. Once Sorcerer Weekly got wind of it, the next issue had it as its front page.
(in a dark lair)
A purple haired man wearing a black coat walked down through a dark tunnel, before getting out into a more open area, with a circular opening on the cave's ceiling, where a beam of light shone through. In the light, was a throne, with its back to the hall. The throne was on stone pedestal, and surrounding the pedestal was a large, bright green lawn, that seemed peaceful, as for the hordes of snakes slithering through the blades. The man fell to one knee before the throne, just outside of the grass.
"My Lord, you summoned me?" he asked.
"That question implies that there should be another reason for you to enter my presence," a voice from the throne answered, "Are the rumors true?"
"It appears so."
"Well then," the voice said, "I'll confess I wasn't entirely sure this would happen. It seemed almost too good to be true."
"Shall we take action?"
"Not yet. We have to be sure the process will work." As the voice talked, a snake slithered up to the throne. A hand then held out, and the snake slithered onto it.
"How would you have me do that? Shall I get one of the lackeys to take it?"
"No, we need to test it on a person with an already great reserve of magic energy. Try it out on one of their guild mate. I'd certainly be intrigued to see that."
"Any particular target?"
"No, but preferably one of their more powerful ones. Also, acquire the target now. If we try do it after we curse the experimental subject, our chances will be diminished more significantly."
"I will see to it, my Lord."
"Good, now take your leave," the voice said, as the hand stroked the snake. The man left down the way he came. The hand scratched the snake under the neck.
"The era of the Oracion Seis is ended, and with it the era of dark guilds will also come to an end," the voice said, as he waved his hand, and the snake abruptly froze solid, "The era of dark lords is upon us."
(at Fairy Tail)
Its been two months since I moved in with Natsu Lucy wrote And two months since I find out I was pregnant with Natsu's child. I'll tell you, Mom, I don't know how you went through all this with me. Morning sickness is a pain, and according to Natsu, I'm REALLY susceptible to mood swings. I'm already looking forward to teaching my kid all about Celestial Spirits, and Natsu's really excited to teach him or her about dragons. Lucy stretched, as she looked over what was now both her and Natsu's house. After Lucy had moved in, she quickly cleaned the place up, to make it more friendly for her, and her child.
They were also planning on adding onto the house. Seeing as the amount of residents was about to double, they needed more room. With the help of the guild, they were adding a second floor, and an extension to the back, with a nursery. One thing Lucy was happy about, was not doing rent, since Natsu owned this house, and property, a portion of Lucy's reward didn't have to go towards rent. And good thing too, because if she still had to worry about money like that, then Lucy would have to deal with her father.
Lucy still hadn't told him about her pregnancy, though considering how fast word seemed to travel, he may have already known. If he did, then he didn't tell her about it. Maybe Jude did know, but Lucy didn't expect him to start contacting her about it.
"Lucy," Natsu, said as he came up, and wrapped his arms around Lucy's shoulders, "We need to head to the guild!"
"Alright," Lucy said, as she got up, "I just finished anyway." The two then headed up, as Happy floated after them.
(with Erza)
Erza hummed a tone to herself, as she stared out the train window. She was coming home from a solo job. The job was uneventful, and all around pretty boring. One thing Erza liked about Fairy Tail, was something was always happening.
As the train roamed down the tracks, Erza could hear the sound of the train steward coming down the car. Hopefully he had some cake.
"Can I offer you anything, ma'am?" the steward asked he came up with his trolley.
"Do you have any cake?" Erza asked.
"Anything in particular?"
"Strawberry chesescake. If you've got any other kind, then I won't have it." Erza was one of the people "enlightened" to the greatness of cake, and was not going to settle for anything less.
"I suppose," the steward said, as he pulled out some cake.
"Thank you," Erza said, as she took it.
"And here's something complimentary," the steward said, holding out a red bottle, "Every passenger gets one."
"Oh, thank you," Erza said as she took it. As the steward went down the hall, Erza studied the liquid, before shrugging. She wasn't particularly thirsty, and figured she'd save it for later.
(at Fairy Tail)
"Looking for a job?" Lucy asked, as she came up next to Wendy, who was standing by the quest board.
"Yeah," Wendy answered, "I'd like to go on a quest with Natsu." Wendy had managed to establish herself in the guild quite well since joining. She was also getting very close to Natsu. She now fully identified as his little sister, and would often refer to Natsu as "big brother". The two always sat close to each other, and Wendy regularly tagged along with Natsu wherever they want. And aside from Lucy, she was the person Natsu was the most protective of; actually, it could be argued that Natsu was just as protective to his sister as he was to his girlfriend.
"I'd love to go with you, but Natsu won't let me go on any real jobs while I'm pregnant," Lucy explained.
"That makes sense knowing Natsu," Erza said, as she walked up.
"Ah, welcome back," Lucy said, "How'd the quest go?"
"The same as it always seems to go," Erza said, "Another run of the mill monster, a troll in this case. I tracked it, found it, slew it, got paid, and got home. That's it."
"Easy pickings for a girl like you," Lucy said.
"I got this on the train," Erza said, holding up the bottle, "Seems like it might be good to drink."
"Are you sure its safe to drink?" Kinana asked, as she came up, holding a tray. Speaking of new members, Kinana was also having an easy time getting into Fairy Tail. She didn't have much talent in the way of magic, getting a job as a waitress. However, she was pressuring Mirajane to teach her transformation magic. That made Lucy nervous; it was almost as if Kinana was subconsciously trying to turn back into a snake.
"I'm sure its fine," Erza said, "It doesn't look like a poison."
"Yo! Wendy!" Natsu called, "Have you found a job yet?"
"I did," Wendy answered, holding up a request. It was an easy one, consisting of handling a couple of thugs who were bullying the townsfolk.
"Maybe I can actually join you on this one?" Lucy asked, "Its getting boring just sitting in the guild hall."
"No way!" Natsu answered, "You'll be in danger!"
"Please!" Lucy begged.
"No!"
"Let her join," Erza said, giving Natsu one of her "death glares". Natsu recoiled in fear at that, but still was resistant.
"Come on, its not as if I'll be alone, you'll be with me, and so will Wendy," Lucy said. Natsu cringed, before sighing.
"Fine."
"Great!" Lucy said, "Let me run home and get my whip! Then we can go!" She then ran out of the guild hall.
"You can't be so protective of her," Erza said, as she took a glass from Kinana, and pouring her drink into the glass, "Its doing her a disservice."
"But she's pregnant," Natsu said.
"She's only two months, and she's not even showing yet," Erza said.
"I hope someday my own prince will come back to me!" Kinana said, "Just as he promised!" Her eyes sparkled at that notion.
"It takes more than that to find love," Erza said, as she took a sip, "You have to take initiative."
"You see Carla?" Happy said, as he came up to his fellow cat, who had been standing next to Wendy, "Now let's go have some fish."
"I'd protest, but it would just go into that abyss you call a brain," Carla said, turning her nose up at Happy.
"Be nice, Carla," Wendy said.
"Yes," Erza agreed, "Here at Fair…." She suddenly doubled over, grabbing her stomach.
"Erza!" Wendy said, as she come over, "Do you need my help?"
"I…," Erza began, before letting out a scream, as her body glowed, attracting everyone's attention.
"Erza!" Mirajane cried, as everyone gathered around the S-Class mage.
"What's going on with her?" Elfman said. His question was answered, as Erza began to change. Light fur began to cover her body, as her hands turned into paws, her teeth into fangs, and her ears into cat ears. She fell to all fours, as her head changed, and a tail came out of her back. In no time, Erza had completely transformed, as her armor fell apart around her.
"She turned into a cat!" Happy said.
"She's a lioness!" Carla corrected.
"Erza…," Makarov said as he tried to approach. However, the lioness that was once Erza let out a razor, before her body began to glow again. She shrank, as her body collapsed into a thinner form. Her front paws reached out, as her claws lengthened. Her skin turned to some kind of metal. Soon, in her place, was a long pole arm, shaped like a lion, with two paws outstretched, baring its claws.
Everyone stared in shock. Erza, their pride and joy, had just turned into a halberd.
Note: I imagine most people recognize what this means. Seems like a familiar enemy has reared his head. And Lucy may be in trouble as well.
This is the beginning of an original arc, but I don't know how long it will end up being.
Be sure to review.
I'm sorry to do this, but it had to be said. I just ran into the MOST butthurt Gray fangirl I've ever seen, who insulted another person's art just because it featured Natsu in it. Hell, one of her favorites was a rant saying how Natsu was absolutely awful, and people are idiots for liking him. I for one, love Natsu, he's my favorite character, with Lucy being number two, and several people being number three (Erza's among them). Of course I love all the FT characters, so….