Tail Of A Fairy

24.

Lucy stretched out in the mud bath. It was a beautiful spa, complete with a hot mud bath large enough to fit the women of Fairy Tail on their day off. The cucumbers were slowly sliding down her face, so Lucy took them off. She didn't like the slimy feeling they left on her skin. She looked around and saw the other women enjoying themselves. Erza was relaxing on the other side, and Levy was talking with Evergreen and Cana.

"It was so strange for me to stop taking jobs at first, once I was pregnant." Levy admitted. "I thought I'd die of boredom."

Cana laughed at this. "For me, it wasn't the jobs! I couldn't believe I had to go cold turkey for nine months! Bacchus didn't help much either, that drunk!" She teased with a smile.

Erza had since slid over to the conversation to join. "It was the strangest thing for Jellal when he found out, it was as if he hadn't quite realized what it meant to have a kid."

Lucy soon found her way over to join the conversation. She was curious what these older mothers did about jobs. Lucy was unsure, she wanted to stay and wait until Nashi was a little older before leaving him behind, or even bringing him along. But Natsu was starting to get impatient. He wanted to go on jobs together again.

"So," Lucy chimed in, asking her question. "What do you girls think?"

They pondered over it by themselves for a while. It was Levy that first came to a conclusion. "Stay home."

"Juvia agrees, Juvia needs to be there for Gael-chan. Gael-chan is fragile when Gray-sama and Juvia are gone. She is a rain woman too." Juvia looked down, and Lucy could see the tears forming in her eyes.

"Hey," Lucy comforted. "Don't worry. You eventually figured out how to stop the rain. And Gael doesn't have it as strongly as you do. It doesn't rain all the time for her. And the guild's here for her."

Lisanna shifted over to Juvia and wrapped her arm around Juvia's shoulders. "Don't worry about that, Juvia. Gael is a strong girl. She can figure it out."

Everyone nodded. They would always be there for each other. As Guild-mates. As Friends. As Family. As Mothers. It was then that Lucy asked her question again.

"What should I do about Nashi?"

"Nashi needs you, Lucy," Erza stated. "He's too young to be without a constant parental figure. You don't want him having to grow up too fast."

Lucy pondered over their advice. Evergreen thought it would be better to bring the kid along, after all, it had worked so well for Khayal. But, Lucy thought, he's an accomplished pickpocket and underwear thief. Lucy didn't think that was what Nashi needed. So she settled into a deep corner in the mud bath and tossed the ideas around. The guild would take care of Nashi while her and Natsu were gone, but would that have a negative impact on their family? Could they really just get up and leave him? But Natsu was so looking forward to going on jobs with all of us.

Lucy leaned back and looked at herself. The stretch marks on her stomach were slowly fading away. But she could see the wispy lines even clearer in the mud — it stuck so well to the thinned skin. She gently traced them, as Natsu liked to. He said it reminded him of how strong Lucy was to go through all that pain for a baby. As Lucy traced the lines, she got thinking about Nashi; how he was still so young, and how his speech and movements were developing slower than Gael. Lucy had asked around, and lots of people that she talked to said he was developing at a normal rate. But, Nashi was her son, so she still worried about him.

Lucy took a deep breath in. The scented mud from the bath was all she could smell. It was strange for her not to be surrounded by the smell of Natsu. Even when he was away on a job Lucy was still at the house, taking care of Nashi. She wrapped her arms around herself in an effort to comfort herself.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Say, Natsu," Jellal started. "Have you and Lucy decided if you're going to do jobs together yet?"

Natsu looked at Jellal. They were all sitting around Gray's living room, most of the kids sleeping on the couches. Laxus was sitting on a couch with his baby asleep in his arms. He kept twitching, obviously wanting to move around, but he wouldn't dare wake his child. Gael and Nashi were sleeping together all rolled up in a heavy blanket. Subaru had laid her head on her father's knee, and was quiet. Nayeli had just moved over to join Gael and Nashi.

"Well, not yet." Natsu sighed. "Lucy isn't sure of what she wants to do. She said she's worried about Nashi and about leaving him behind. But I really miss going on jobs with her, and I can't wait to take Nashi too."

Gajeel looked at Natsu. He was sitting on a plain wooden chair, with his legs stretched wide. But he wasn't relaxed. Natsu was leaning forward on his elbows, with his hands clasped together. His face seemed weighed down, and his brow was furrowed.

"Listen, Flamer." Gajeel stated. "The mom's gotta be there for the kid until she feels ready. It's different for everyone. Hell, Evergreen was back out as soon as Makarov would let her. She even took Khayal along. And Levy, it took her about two years to get back out there. And we all now Erza didn't even bring Subaru to the guild until she was four."

Natsu looked at Gajeel. Gajeel was looking Natsu straight in the eye. He meant it. And he knew that Natsu needed to hear it.

"You're not a patient man, Natsu. Hell, you weren't even a patient kid. But, you are even less patient when it comes to Lucy. And that can hurt her. Don't do that to her. Don't do that to yourself."

Natsu shivered at Gajeel's warning. And that was what it was, a warning. Natsu knew who he was. He knew very well. And he knew Lucy. She was a gentle spirit, and a fierce spirit. She would make the right decision for Nashi. Natsu just hoped he could be patient enough for Lucy to make that decision.