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The battle had finished quickly, as it often did when their team got serious. Gray felt as though he had barely lost any magic power, and he grinned at Natsu, who was yelling at the bandits which Erza had already tied up.
They had been dating for a while new, Natsu and himself. Things were moving quicker than either of them had ever expected, but they were both happy, and that was not an emotion which Gray took for granted. He had grown so used to not experiencing it, being with Natsu was like the sky parting and finally feeling the sun on his face.
As Wendy healed Lucy’s minor wounds, Gray scanned their surroundings. It was getting colder again, and the clearing they occupied had just lost the sheen of ice when they arrived. The forest beyond that, however, still glimmered with frost. Gray thought it was beautiful; it reminded him of home.
He heard a noise, a cry from in the forest, and immediately ice prickled across his skin. The others had missed it, but before Gray could alarm them he heard it again. It did not sound like a man, and Gray could sense no magic energy; as far as he could tell, the source of the noise was safe. An animal, maybe, but it if was crying then it had to be injured. Gray couldn’t just leave it.
With a frown, he jogged across the clearing. Something inside Gray was warning him about what he may find, and with caution he approached the edge of the forest.
The noise came again, caught between a gurgle and a whine. It was not animalistic enough, but still Gray could not work out what it could be. He scanned the area, eyes falling on a pile of blankets.
“What the hell?”
Gray’s eyes widened as he realised what was bundled in the package. Small hands grabbed at him, searching for comfort which could not be found in the cold. A baby, ruddy cheeked and teary eyed, not old enough to support its own head but still able to process that it was alone.
He pulled off the blanket to reveal the rest of the child, trying to find a clue as to who had left it there and why, but all he could see was a pink jumpsuit and a silver rattle. Gray presumed that that made the baby a girl, although that was the least of his concerns at the moment. He swaddled her back in the blankets and picked her up. Even at the simple touch of his skin, the baby began to settle.
“What are you staring at?” Natsu sprung at Gray’s back, jolting him slightly.
The babe stirred in Gray’s arms, and he turned to glare at Natsu.
“Careful, Natsu!” He scolded.
Natsu gasped when he saw the precious bundle which Gray cradled. He glanced from the baby to Gray, demanding answers which the ice wizard was unable to provide.
“Where did she come from?”
“I just found her here. Alone.”
Immediately, Natsu’s expression shifted to one of anger. His eyes went hard, and his eyebrows formed an intense line of pink. This girl, this innocent baby, had been abandoned by her parents, and that sense of loss was something which Natsu could relate to, and Gray understood that. However, he also knew that this was different.
When Igneel had left him, the dragon slayer could still support himself. He could walk, find food, even use magic, in the crudest sense. But this little girl, with her tufts of Sakura hair and gentle, unaware eyes, was entirely defenceless. If a predator were to find her, or Gray had not been observant enough, she surely would not have survived more than a couple hours, a day at the most.
“What are you both doing?”
“Making out, I bet.”
Erza’s shout and Lucy’s grumbled startled both of the men, and Gray clutched the baby close to his chest as he turned to face them.
Lucy’s expression went from one of humour to horror, and instantly Erza was at Gray’s side, examining the baby girl.
“Where are her parents?” Her voice was stern, brown eyes scanning the area, but there was no trace of life. The infant was alone.
Wendy appeared, red-faced and panting, slower than her taller guildmates. Still, her empathy was second to none, and she began to use her healing magic, searching for any wounds. She gave a sigh of relief,
“She seems to be okay, Gray-san.”
Even though that pleased him, Gray knew that this situation should never have happened. He did not know how to feel, focused only on keeping the baby safe. She had her palm flat on his guild mark, scraping her nails along the skin and gurgling intently. She seemed happy with him, and with each second Gray felt more protective of her.
“Although that is a positive, we still need to try and track down her family and alert the authorities.” Erza hummed pulling her communication lacrima from thin air. “She will need to be placed into care until we can find out what has happened.”
The sheer notion of that made Gray feel sick.
“No.” He rubbed his thumb across the back of her head, watching as her eyelids began to close. “She isn’t going into care. No way.”
“Where else can she go, Gray?” Lucy looked to be on the verge of tears, but Gray’s attention was not on her; instead, he met Natsu’s gaze steadily, hoping that his boyfriend could understand.
“She can stay with us.”
Natsu agreed readily, nodding and gently warming the blankets which swaddled her.
“You don’t have anything ready for her, and you’ve never taken care of a baby before.” Lucy grimaced, but Gray cut her off.
“We’ll learn, and we can buy what we need on the way back.”
Although it seemed as though Lucy would protest once again, Erza spoke before she could, dialing a number and holding the communicator to her ear.
“That’s settled then. I will contact the guild and see what we can pull together.”
So far, only Levy and Gajeel had had a child, but there were other parents which could help them out. Even without that, Gray felt confident. This child had settled with him, her breath leaving her in soft snores. He could not abandon her, not again.
Gray walked with her pressed against his chest, and Natsu wrapped his arm around Gray’s waist, untangling his scarf and folding it across the sleeping baby. His expression was warm now, the fire leaving him at the prospect of keeping the child with them.
Things were moving quickly, but Gray could not find it within himself to be afraid. Instead, he celebrated quietly. He lived with the man he loved, worked with friends who were more like family, and spent every day wondering what would be their next adventure. And now they had someone else to care for. Maybe this would be the biggest adventure of all. It would be difficult, but after battling monsters and facing death, Gray had faith that they could figure this out. And with Natsu by his side, Grau truly felt as though there was nothing else for him to fear.