Mikoto was still smiling as Lucy continued to bandage up part of Mikoto's leg. When Lucy asked Mikoto why she was looking so happy, Mikoto didn't even hold back, telling Lucy she saw everything.
Lucy blushed. "R-really? You saw the whole thing?"
"Well it was bound to happen eventually." said Mikoto cheerfully. "And let's face it. The whole thing was so obvious that Mira tried to set you guys up together for weeks.."
"Mira tried to set you and Touma together too." said Lucy. "Remember? She attempted to make Gajeel, Levy, Me, Natsu, You, Touma, Gray, and Juvia to play 7 minutes in heaven. Gajeel and Levy ended up arguing about something or other...me and Natsu fell asleep playing Go Fish in the closet, you zapped Touma a total of 20 times, and Gray ended up running all the way home with a lovesick Juvia on his tail trying to make him wear a sweater vest that said My Sweetheart on it."
Mikoto chuckled. "We are such a disfunctional family...and I love that about us.."
Nearby, Kanzaki was on a phone, talking to Agnese Sanctis on the other end. "Yes...the situation was diffused thanks to Natsu..for now, without the dragons attacking, we'll have some time to...wait...what!? Are you serious!!? NOW!!?"
"What!?" said Natsu. "What's happening?!"
Kanzaki closed her phone and looked directly at Mikoto. "Your mother..she's going into labor.."
There was a massive shocked silence. Mikoto stared at Kanzaki with a stunned look in her eyes. "M-my mom?....labor?"
"R-really!?" Elli squeaked.
"Oh my God.." said Lucy. "That means.."
"PIZZA!?" Natsu exclaimed, looking rather flabbergasted.3
"Wrong word Natsu!" said Happy.
"Oh..I mean...BABY!!?"
"I..I need a moment!" said Mikoto put a hand to her forhead as Lucy laughed and hugged Mikoto.
"I'm not finished." said Kanzaki with an ominous look in her eyes. "Apparently there's a problem..Agnese needs an extra pair of hands in there, and the other magicians are out quelling the panic."
"I'll go!" said Nicole standing up. "I know a bit about child birth myself. Though my knowledge is sort of slim, I'll be able to help out somehow."
Kanzaki nodded. "I'll accompany you!"
Nicole placed a hand on Mikoto's shoulder. "Don't worry, everything's gonna be fine..just go and find those gates..I'll take good care of her..I promise.."
Mikoto just continued to stutter. "B-baby...an actual baby..."
Lucy helped Mikoto stand up shakily as Nicole and Kanzaki ran off in the direction of the house after Kanzaki briefly gave Elli the possible gate location (Natsu and Happy are way too forgetful with directions XD ).
"Just breathe." said Lucy. "Breathe."
Mikoto nodded. "Y-yeah."
Together, Mikoto, Happy, Elli and Lucy ran down the street towards the location. But as they continued onward, Mikoto's mind kept on running like an overactive generator: I'm going to have a sister...granted I have 10,000 of them already...but this is different..this isn't a clone...I'm gonna be a Big Sister...and Lucy is gonna be the godmother..and ..and..ohmygosh...ohmygosh..ohmygosh...
"Hey.." said Natsu thoughtfully. "You think I would make a good Uncle Natsu?"
"Well you get along great with Asuka." said Lucy. "I'm sure you'd definitely make a good uncle!"
"I'm...gonna...have...a little sister." said Mikoto. "that makes 10,003. Oh my God."
"Just try and calm down." said Happy. "It'll be fine!"
"My little sister is being born when it's just moments away from the end of the multiverse as we know it." said Mikoto. "Yep...nothing to panic about...I am perfectly CALM!!"1
As she said the last word, Mikoto's bangs sparked rather dangerously.
"Please tell me she isn't gonna go into another Level 6 shift.." Natsu whispered to Lucy. "Cause I think she might be losing it.."
"How would you feel if you had a little sibling being born when the world was ending?" said Lucy. "I wont be surprised if she starts having mood swings.."
"OH MY GOD I HAVE A NEW SISTER!!" Mikoto screamed.
"Yep.." said Lucy. "and there you have it."
Back at the house in the upstairs bedroom, around 12 minutes later.
"Breathe through it honey..it's gonna be okay." said Tabigake to Misuzu as she cried out with pain.
"DON'T YOU TALK TO ME ABOUT FINE!!" Shouted Misuzu. "I AM DYING HERE!!!!"1
Agnese Sanctis was at the end of the bed, peering under the raised sheets as Nicole hurried in with a dish full of boiling water.
"Okay! Just try and do what I say.." said Agnese. "And Mr. Misaka..you might want to brace yourself..this is where you wife gains the strength of 45 men and a battalion of tanks!"
"I know.." said Tabigake gritting his teeth as Misuzu squeezed his hand extremely hard. "She was like this when Mikoto was born..."
"JUST TAKE IT OUT ALREADY!!" Misuzu screamed. "THOSE DARN LUCKY DRAGONS!! AT LEAST CHILDBIRTH WAS NEVER PAINFUL FOR THEM!! THUNDAARIX SAID SO HERSELF!!!!"1
"Well they aren't exactly mammals are they?" said Nicole as she knealt down next to Agnese and started helping her. "Though I imagine laying the eggs first must have some degree of pain.."
"I'M NOT LAYING A FREAKING EGG!!" Misuzu screamed as she grabbed a vase from the bedside table and threw it at the wall, shattering it.
"I don't know if I want to have a child.." murmured Kanzaki in fear as she watched from the doorway.2
"I could use my powers and phase it out." Nicole suggested. "But I might accidentally harm her body."
"No.." said Agnese. "We do this the old fashioned way..this isn't just a baby..this is a Dragon Born baby..if this was a hospital, it wouldn't be an issue..but since we're doing it this way..if we're not careful, the dragon's blood within the child could awaken her powers instantly."
Nicole gulped. The soonest a Dragon Born could awaken his or her powers was at 2 to 3 years of age...if they were awakened before then..the body could be seriously damaged by the attempt to form a Dragon Born ability..especially if it was a corpreal one like Natsu's Sword and Mikoto's wings.
"Alright..now push.." said Agnese.
It went on for who knew how long...Agnese could be seen with plenty of sweat on her brow, she actually removed her nun's habit due to the nerves. Nicole helped best she could, feeling all the more tempted to just use her powers to turn the baby intangible and just phase it out..
Finally, just when the baby was about to finally pull through..
The door opened and Leivinia Birdway walked in. "Hey I was just finishing patrol..and I was wondering if.."
Suddenly there was the sound of crying, and Agnese said. "It's out!"
Birdway's jaw dropped open at the sudden witnessing of childbirth. She dropped her wand and her arm swung downwards comically like a grandfather clock. "I-it's...so...blue.."
Birdway went pale and fainted.5
"Now she's the last person I expected to lose it." said Kanzaki.
"Well think about it..as much knowlege as she has.." said Nicole. "She's still only 12. How many childbirths do you witness by that age?"1
10 minutes later, Misuzu was holding a bundle of blankets in her arms with Tabigake by her side.
Misuzu smiled with joy. "She's beautiful..little Lucy Misaka..Oh I wish Mikoto and the others could see her.."
"Yes.." said Kanzaki. "I can imagine Natsu would probably have quite a rambunctious reaction."
Misuzu looked up at Nicole. "Do you want to hold her?"
Nicole felt surprised. "M-me? Are you sure?"
Misuzu nodded. "You've helped take care of my daughter so well..it's only fitting that you see the new addition..besides, I have a feeling this little girl is going to join Fairy Tail some day too..I want her to get to know her family.."
Nicole held her hands out and took the bundle of blankets with gentle hands. She looked into the face of Lucy Misaka for the first time. The baby was extroardinarily calm and awake. While usually newborn babies would be fast asleep, little Lucy's wide eyes were staring curiously back at Nicole. The little hair she had was already the trademark chestnut brown of Mikoto and Misuzu. Indeed, Nicole could already see that this baby was going to look almost exactly like her older sister...except for one thing..
"Her eyes." said Nicole. "The color."
Lucy's eyes were a bright electric blue. It was usually the case that Dragon Borns would inherit their Dragon mother's eyes..or at least the eye color. But if the eye color was a bright unusual color, like a fire dragon's bright red..or in this case, a bright blue for a Thunder Dragon...that meant..1
"She's a Rareblood.." said Nicole. "I thought it was just a myth."
"A Rareblood?" Agnese asked.
"It's a Dragon Born whose powers are extremely well developed by their birth." said Nicole. "You can tell if the eyes have an unusual color. While they still don't evolve Dragon Born abilities until later..they will already develope normal Dragon Slayer abilities by the time they are born...I suspect Natsu Dragneel is a Rareblood himself...that's why he can use Dragon Slayer powers without activating his Dragon Born power...she's a unique one that's for sure, other then Natsu and three others...there has never been another Rareblood in the entire history of both our worlds...not that I know of at least.."
The baby raised a hand out curiously a yellow electric spark jumped of her tiny fingertips. Little Lucy then looked at her hand with even more curiosity as more little sparks jumped off.
Nicole let Lucy Misaka clench her small little hand around her finger. Holding a baby..looking at it...it was like nothing she ever experienced.
"Hello there." said Nicole in a soft voice. "I'm Nicole..I'm a friend of your big sister.."
Little Lucy continued to stare up at Nicole with her calm wide electric blue eyes.
"I'm sorry she's not here right now.." said Nicole. "But that's only because she had to go save the world..so tha you could play all you like without being scared.."
Nicole suddenly felt tears begin to slide off her cheek as she spoke. It was then that she realized..that it was very likely that Mikoto was never going to see her little sister..1
Somewhere near the center of London.
Mikoto looked at the strange looking house. It was different from the others. It looked really old and was covered in magic ruins which made the house invisible to all but those who could use magic themselves.
"So this is the place?" Lucy asked.
"It is.." said Mikoto. "It's calling me just like the others...I can hear it beckoning me forward."
Mikoto opened the door to the house and stepped in as Natsu, Lucy, Elli, and Happy came in after her. As she walked around the dusty living room that was filled with cobwebs and covered up furniture...Mikoto felt a an eirie electric charge surging around the room...it was a familiar charge that reminded her of someone...but who?
"Mikoto..look at this."
Mikoto looked to where Lucy was pointing at a dusty round mirror on the wall. It was decorated with multiple intertwined golden dragons on the edges and the entire surface of the mirror was covered in dust. Mikoto could feel the electric charge get stronger..as if the familiar individual..the next phantom she would have to face, was using his power to beckon her further.
Mikoto put a hand to the mirror and wiped some dust off. Immediately a bright crackle of yellow lightning surrounded her, and she found herself saoring far away from the old house and then in a flash, she found herself standing in the middle of a giant train station...however, no trains were around...looking around Mikoto began to recognize the large stone pillars..however, she had never known this place to be empty when she saw pictures of it..
"Kings Cross Station.." Mikoto said. "But...why?"
"Are ya just gonna keep wondering? Or are we gonna get this show on the road?" said a familiar voice.
Mikoto turned her head slowly...and low and behold, she found herself looking at none other then Laxus Dreyar, his dark coat fluttering slightly.
"Hello Mikoto.." said phantom Laxus. "Welcome to the final hurdle..."