Trail of a Fairy

18. Friends

Nashi was the first to wake up. He rubbed his eyes groggily, and sat up in bed. Looking over to the other bed, he could see his dad. Natsu was curled up in a tight ball, hugging his pillow tightly. Nashi chuckled at his dad. But he got up anyway and quietly gathered his things for a bath.

It was a quick bath, with few drawings in the steam. And Nashi hurried back, not wanting to miss anything that his dad might do or say. Just as Nashi arrived, his dad was waking up. Nashi saw a huge yawn as he opened the door.

"Morning dad." He said cheerfully.

Natsu rubbed his eyes a bit, and looked up. His vision was a bit blurry, but he saw the head of yellow hair.

"Morning Nashi." He grumbled.

Running his hand along his chin, Natsu decided he should shave again. No point in shaving for only one day. So, grabbing his bathroom kit, he headed over to take care of it. Nashi chuckled as he watched his sleepy dad wobble through the hallway. Sitting down on his bed, Nashi began to play with his keys.

His finger ran over all of them first, then settled on Virgo. Her key was quiet and still. But that didn't surprise Nashi; it was her day off anyway. And that meant he couldn't ask her about the Duke Everlue mission. Nashi felt his shoulders hunch a little bit more. With a sigh, he moved over to Plue's key. It had been a while since he had called the little guy.

"Open: Gate of Canis Minor, Nikora!"

Poof. The little dog plopped onto the bed beside Nashi. He shivered a bit, then face planted into the covers. Nashi watched with a silent smile as the spirit popped his head above the covers.

"Hey Plue." He chuckled. "Cold?"

Plue shivered once more as he looked up at Nashi. On instinct, he began to pat the little guy's head. As Plue's head started to droop, so did Nashi's. The minutes passed, and soon both of them were fast asleep.

When Natsu opened the door, he couldn't help but smile. Nashi was still sitting up on the bed; patting Plue's head even in his sleep. As quietly as a parent could, Natsu put his stuff away and headed out the door.

As Natsu exited the inn, he felt a chill run down his back. He groaned, and turned around. He could already smell him. And the other two.

"Yo — Ice princess, what the hell are you doing here?" Natsu crossed his arms.

Gray, from across the street, shuddered. He could feel the glare at him without seeing who it was. No one called him ice princess. Except Natsu. So he turned to face his greatest enemy and friend. He grumbled, but Juvia poked him in the ribs. Hard. With a smile, Juvia pulled her husband towards Natsu. Gael followed a few steps behind her parents.

"Natsu-san," Juvia smiled. "We came to tell you something."

Gray began to grumble again, but with a poke from his wife and a small kick from his daughter, he spoke up.

"Happy and Carla have another egg. Freyr's through the roof with excitement."

"Oh." Natsu paused. Another cat, eh? "That's great for them. How's Pantherlily doing, by the way? Is he still a loner?"

"Yep." Gael popped up. "He is. And where's Nashi?"

With a sigh, Natsu looked down at the girl. She looked a lot like her mother; especially in that dress and hat. Yet her eyes and hair were more like Gray's. Natsu tsked, and looked the other way.

"He's still asleep in the hotel. It's the one just down the street." Natsu sighed. "Go wake him up if you want. And tell him about the egg, okay girl?"

"Yep!" She smiled, skipping off down the road.

Gray watched his daughter skip down the street. He sighed as he felt Juvia hug his arm tighter. She was watching Gael too.

"Flamer — you doing okay?"

Natsu froze. He looked back to Gray. Gray's face was serious. His eyebrows were deep set, and his frown was slight. Juvia watched him worriedly. Feeling his heart squeeze, Natsu saw how tight she was holding onto Gray's arm. But he tried not to show it.

"Yeah, so what?" Natsu looked away.

Gray pulled away from Juvia's grip. Grabbing Natsu's shoulder, he moved forward quickly.

"Natsu, you lost your wife. Sure, it's been a long time, but you still lost Lucy. I know it's gonna be hard for you to tell Nashi everything."

Gray watched as Natsu flinched. He had hit the mark. Gray squeezed Natsu's shoulder tighter.

"Come home. You can take a break. Juvia and I can watch Nashi if you want us to."

Juvia nodded fervently. It made Natsu sick to his stomach. Pushing away Gray's arm, he scowled.

"He's my son — what makes you think I can't take care of him?" Natsu pushed.

Gray's eye twitched. Grabbing Natsu's scarf, Gray brought his face closer. "Take care of him?! You abandoned him for nearly three years!"

"Dad!" Two little voices called out.

Gray immediately dropped Natsu. Natsu fixed his scarf, and smiled at Nashi.

"You're awake, kid!"

Nashi saw his Uncle drop his father, but didn't mention it. Gael gave him a sidelong glance, but he ignored it. Fire and Ice will always be Fire and Ice. But he smiled widely; he was glad his friend and her family were here.

"Dad, we should go home. I want to see Freyr's little sibling!"

"Yeah!" Gael cheered, looking to her friend. "It's such a big egg, I don't know how Carla laid it!"

"Yeah," Gray chuckled, ruffling the boy's hair. "Let's go home, Nash."

Natsu stopped. His stomach twisted, and he looked toward the train station, then back to Gray. And finally stared at his son.

"Wait — you're going to make me ride the train with this weird exhibitionist?!"

Nashi shrugged. Grabbing Gael's hand, he turned around. "It can't be too bad."

As the other four began to walk, Natsu stayed dumbfounded. Beginning to chase after them, he cried out.

"You can't be serious, kid!"