Gray & Scarlet

EPILOGUE: By the River

MARCH 30, X797

Gray Fullbuster age 23

Erza Fullbuster age 25

Mika Fullbuster age 4

GRAY'S POV

Pulled along by a small hand, I walk down a gently curving road at the side of a familiar river.

I have to bend over a little to match the height of my companion. Moving at an awkward trot, I do my best to keep up.

Mika:"Daddy, you're slow! Get a move on!"

Gray:"Maybe you could slow down instead, Mika..."

Mika:"Hurry up or we'll run out of sun!"

Thus my feeble attempt of slowing my daughter down is shot down instantly.

As Mika hauls me forward renewed vigor, I hear a quiet giggle from behind us.

Gray:"Look, Erza. Can you stop laughing and say something to the kid...?"

Ignoring  request entirely, Erza smiles over at us.

One of her hands is occupied with a picnic basket, the other with a bag full of drawing/coloring materials.

She watches her husband and only daughter run noisily along with an expression of profound contentment on her face.

Mika:"We're here! Here, Daddy, sit! Mommy goes here!"

With practiced movements, Mika brushes away a little dirt, then guides us to our seats on the grass.

The instant Erza settled herself onto the ground, Mika slips in between her legs and onto her lap.

Gray:"Why don't you sit with me every once in a while, Mika?"

Mika:"No way. your knees are all bony, Daddy!"

Kicking her stubby legs in the air, Mika turns her face away in rejection.

Erza, of course, just watches and laughs. Typical.

Mika:"Mommy, pictures! I wanna draw pictures!"

Looking back at her mother, Mika makes her usual demand.

Erza nods and retrieves a sketchbook from her bag.

Coming here has become part of our normal routine.

It's always the three of us: Erza, me, and our only child. Pretty much every weekend, we're here performing a happy-family number sweet enough that it'd likely nauseate any unfortunate observers.

Erza:"Come on, hold it more carefully. you'll get yourself dirty again, you know?"

Erza reaches down and makes Mika shift the marker in her hand to a more normal grip.

Last week, the budding artist in question ended up defacing one of her favorite blouses as a result of that sloppy marker technique.