Dear Readers,

I have been sitting on this story for so long and recently re-read it and realize it had a lot of plot errors; therefore, I have decided to rewrite the story. Now, no need to fear, I am going to stick to the original idea but expand upon it so that more can be understood about Natsu's past and those who connect to it. In addition, this is going to ultimately thread into the E.N.D events and details, but that will take a little bit of time to really get going so, just giving you a heads up.

In addition, due to requests: this story series will be included into the World Tree Series stories. But you won't be seeing much of the Kingdom Hearts characters until much later. I hope everyone enjoys the rewrite and tell me what you think!

Disclaimer: I do not own FairyTail, its franchise belongs to Hiro Mashima.

Claimer: I do own three characters, as well as their abilities and the village of which they comes from.

Enjoy the story.

Chapter 1: Wandering Thoughts

{Magnolia: June 15th X791 – 8:15pm}

Storm clouds billowed above, causing a dismal tone to descend upon the town of Magnolia as it had all day, casting out the sunshine that the place was accustomed to, and forcing most to stay indoors for the day. That rule of wanting to stay dry and warm was excluded from a certain person walking by themselves down the streets in the pouring rain. This person was a member of the town's guild known as FairyTail, and was one of their most well-known members at that: a pink-haired Dragon Slayer by the name of Natsu Dragneel. Currently, he was strolling down the street with a discontent expression upon his face.

It wasn't from the rain that had officially drenched him through, but it did spring from the series of recent events that had taken place. A sigh left him as he looked up at the cloudy sky, taking in the torrent of dark gray as rain fell from above. He was tired, but his mind worked in overdrive as he considered what had happened after he had woken up with the others on Tenrou Island to have discovered that seven years had passed by. It was something that had sent them reeling, and the news that FairyTail was the lowest ranking guild in Fiore now had caused a severe heartache to befall them.

When they had left, FairyTail had a beautiful Guild Hall, the honor of being the strongest guild in Fiore, and was loved and respected by the people there and throughout Fiore; however, when they'd come back they were treated to the sight of a rundown millhouse having become their guild hall and the makeshift Fairy Hills becoming the place for the girls to stay. Dark-jade eyes closed as memories rushed through his mind and seemed to become visible to his gaze.

The thoughts lingered on those few moments prior to Acnologia's attack, and the sight of Master Markarov's choice to sacrifice himself for their sakes, their determination to fight back against the Dragon of the Apocalypse – how they had ultimately failed – and then his memories paused upon Lucy, and her bandaged, wounded state thanks to Grimoire Heart, and the tears she shed, collapsed to the ground, fully believing those moments were the end of them all. He remembered holding hands with everyone, wishing deeply to go home, but knowing it would never happen. Thankfully, Mavis Vermillion – their first master – had stepped in at just the right time and sealed Tenrou Island away for their safety. But even then, Natsu could barely believe it had been seven years since the S-Class trials.

"This is messed up….what were we thinking? Fighting Acnologia of all Dragons?! That thing has wiped out entire countries in a single night…we should have run away…not fought it…dammit…" Natsu took in a shuddering breath, hanging his head as his drenched hair fell into his eyes.

Of all the things he genuinely hated, he despised admitting weakness, but even he knew that when it came to Acnologia three Dragon Slayers were nothing but flies. Igneel, Grandine, and Metalicana had trained himself, Wendy, and Gajeel to use the magic they now possessed; however, when it came to fighting an actual flesh and blood dragon they were defenseless. A hiss left him as he looked up to the sky once more before huffing as he started walking and shook out his hair, feeling himself sink into a dull emotionless state akin to what he had done when he had full-heartedly believed Lisanna was dead. He reminded himself that they were alive, they had survived Acnologia of all things and were still well off despite the Infinity Clock incident that they had just narrowly escaped.

"I guess there's no sense in dwelling….I need to head back to the…" Natsu's aloud thought was cut off when he heard the faint patting of bare feet across the wet cobble stone nearby him.

Natsu turned in time to see a shadowy figure fall in the alleyway. The body slumped in a deadened state, making a heavy slap across the drenched stone as they laid there lifelessly. Confused, and concerned, Natsu frowned as he stared at the person a moment longer – well aware that he couldn't sniff them out due to the rainfall - before proceeding with caution towards them. Walking steadily he opened his palm and made a small flame to light the way. It was as he stopped that his eyes fell upon the person lying limply on the ground.

Firstly, he noted that it was a female, and she was in torn and tattered clothing with paled skin that was covered in old bandages, scrapes, bruises, and cuts. Her hair was splayed out messily around her, hanging over her face. It was raven black and straight with what seemed to be streaks of chrome, burnt gold, and copper that showed up even at the end of her bangs. She was wrapped in a tattered cloak and seemed as though she was near death. Worry filled him as Natsu extinguished the flame in his palm and reached down to her.

"Hey! Are you alright? Say something!" he touched her shoulder and the girl weakly opened her dull eyes and glanced up to him.

"P-Please…" her voice cracked, sounding brittle and far too fragile.

"Who did this?" he asked this in concern as she took in a raspy breath through busted lips.

"H-Help…me…Temp… iria…" Natsu reached out gently and felt of her forehead, though her skin was like ice and dampened from the rainfall, he could tell she was burning up with a fever. Dark jade eyes looked her over and he instantly reacted and moved to pull the girl up into his arms.

"Hold on, I'll get you some help…" he said as he held her firmly to him while her head lolled to his shoulder, her hair having fallen heavily to her face as she looked to him weakly and he met her gaze.

"W-Who…are…" he started walking swiftly.

"I've got you, don't worry, we'll have someone helping you soon," he explained as the girl let out a small cough as he kept running.

{FairyTail Guild Hall: 9:20pm}

Due to the stormy weather, most of the members of FairyTail were inside, currently watching several of the boys engage in yet another brawl. Most that weren't turning the guild hall upside down were taking in a warm cup of tea, hot chocolate, or coffee Elfman began to flip the tables to leave nowhere for the other wizards to hide. Erza took a sip of her tea while Lucy blew on her hot chocolate as Wendy sat by with Gray who had managed to stay out of this particular fight as Happy munched on some of his fish and Carla drank her tea with milk in peace. Lucy took a sip of her drink and looked around the hall, noticing the absence of someone while the others watched Elfman swing two other Wizards around as though they were ragdolls.

"Why aren't you joining in on this fight Gray?" asked Erza.

"Because, I'm too tired and I was wondering why there's a blue cat and no pink-haired flame brain to accompany him…" the red-haired Swordswoman looked too Happy, who had his ears back and his eyes downcast as he chewed on his fish.

"Awe…Happy, is everything okay?" asked Wendy as she scratched the back of his ears.

"Natsu said that he needed to be alone for a bit because he wasn't feeling well. So, I came ahead of him…but…when I left…he seemed really upset and he didn't even look at me…" the blue exceed stated.

"That's not normal for Natsu…are you sure he's okay?" the feline nodded.

"He's not sick or anything…at least…from what I saw," he explained.

"Maybe's it's the weather? I'm feeling a bit off too…" all eyes turned to Wendy while Gajeel looked around the room, mayhem still ensuing.

"Nu-uh! Natsu looked different…like he did when we thought Lisanna died." Happy frowned as Carla looked to him.

"Well, Happy, did you maybe consider that he's feeling a bit shaken up since all of this has been happening? We finally get off of Tenrou Island and learn that it has been seven years since then…and now we just narrowly escaped the Infinity Clock situation…it is enough to make us all a little tense," said Carla as Happy shook his head.

"Na, this is Natsu we're talking about here…he's not the kind to just up and get this way from stress…" Gajeel looked to Gray.

"Dragons can be very emotional creatures you know. Plus our senses are higher than yours, ever thought that it's put him off kilter or something?" he asked.

"I guess so, but…" Gray's response was cut off as the doors burst open.

The brawl happening ceased as they took in the form of one Natsu Dragneel, standing there drenched from head to toe with worry evident upon his features as he took in heavy breaths, his hair matted to his forehead as the doors swung shut and they finally took in the form of the wounded, shaking girl in his arms. Erza was quick to stand and head towards him as the others stared onward at the boy in a state of concern as he moved swiftly to the woman. His eyes seemed heavily concerned as the others came his way, immediately launching into finding out what had caused his current state.

"Natsu, what happened? Who's this girl?" Erza asked as she came to him, but he sped past her as if she wasn't there while Natsu kept his gaze upon Markarov.

"She needs help! I think she's been attacked!" he stated as the Master of FairyTail looked to Mirajane and Wendy.

"Girls, get the infirmary ready. We'll need help…Jet?!" the man looked up as Master Markarov looked to him.

"Yea?" the small master of FairyTail stood up.

"Go and retrieve Porlyusica and tell her someone's been injured. Natsu, bring her up to the infirmary now," he said as Jet took off and Natsu followed after Mirajane and Wendy.

"What's going on?" Markarov looked to the others.

"Natsu hasn't explained to me just yet where he found that girl or what her state is. I will go into the infirmary and tend to that, the rest of you are to prepare the meals for everyone for tonight and make sure we have enough means to stay warm in this rain. Erza, Gray, Lucy, and Gajeel…come with me," he stated as he turned to walk towards the back of the building and up a small flight of stairs where the infirmary was.

"Yes sir…." Happy and Carla followed with Lily and the others set to their tasks.

Lucy and the group followed Master Markarov as he went up the stairs and into the infirmary were Mirajane and Wendy were working on the girl as Natsu seemed to still be inside as well. The four of them leaned against the wall across from the door as Happy, Carla, and Lily came to settle upon the ground nearby them to wait for the Master or someone to inform them that it was safe to enter. Meanwhile, the rain poured harshly outside while within the infirmary, Mirajane stripped the girl and set to cleaning the wounds on her body before pulling a pair of pale blue pajamas out for her to be changed into once she had managed to finish with the wounds while Wendy used some of her healing magic on the smaller wounds. Mirajane nodded to the Sky Dragon Slayer and started to get the girl dressed while Natsu kept his gaze down, giving the women time to do their work. It was a few minutes later that Mirajane spoke to him and asked him to come to the bed to use his magic to try and help warm her up.

"Right, okay…" his voice sounded somber as he settled down next to the girl upon a stool and closed his eyes to focus his magic into a small fluctuation of heat to hopefully remove the deep seated chill to her skin.

Master Markarov stood there, watching as Natsu focused on his magic, being able to dry his clothes for the most part due to the fluctuation of the heat as he kept his eyes closed and his attention on the magic he was currently using. As he did so though, Mirajane went to clean out the bowl she'd used to disinfect the girl's wounds and the used swabs while Wendy sat in the corner. In a few moments, Lucy, Erza, Gray, and Gajeel entered the room silently as they watched while Natsu never once broke his concentration, knowing that doing so could result in the girl receiving a horrible burn if he did.

Warm brown eyes looked over the scene as Lucy took in a steady breath, sensing the pink-haired Dragon Slayer's distress as he worked on keeping the girl warm. It was as if someone they – or more specifically he – had known for a long time was gravely ill, because they all hesitated to speak, they kept themselves tempered and took in shallow breaths, not wanting to break the unsteady silence that had currently fallen upon them. That was, until Master Markarov cleared his throat and Natsu stepped away for Wendy to continue using her healing magic. The boy gave a tired sigh, shivering slightly due to the still damp clothes he wore while the tiny man came towards him.

"Natsu, can you tell me about how you came upon this girl?" Master Markarov inquired.

"I was taking a walk….and I found her in an alleyway….she was mumbling a lot…something about someone named Tempiria or somethin' like that…she kept trying to talk, but her voice was so weak I could barely make out what she said…" Markarov nodded.

"Thank you, you did good my boy. Bringing her here may have just saved her life," he stated.

"I just wanted to help her…that's all…" Gray frowned.

"You're strangely calm. Normally you'd get all worked up over this," he said as Natsu shot him a glare.

"Believe it or not, I'm capable of being calm and rational Gray!" the acidic bite in his words caused the Ice-Make Wizard to jolt slightly.

"Jeeze! I was just sayin' no need in biting my head off!" Gray told him as Natsu turned his gaze away from him.

"Sorry…I'm just concerned…when I found her and even now she was so weak…I thought she was going to die in my arms for sure…"

Erza kept her gaze upon the Fire Dragon Slayer as though she hadn't ever laid eyes upon him until now. There was a sense of clarity to her expression as she thought of his personality to a finite point. She knew that Natsu was incredibly loyal, honest, kind-hearted, a tad goofy, and strong willed, determined, and most of all: he was protective and gentle, at least when he wanted to be. If Erza Scarlet knew one thing, it was that Natsu Dragneel wasn't the destructive numbskull everyone thought he was, and she could willingly admit that he did quite the job on convincing people that he was as rough and tumble as they come; however, she knew from their days as children when she had taught him how to read and write that the pink-haired fireball was quite a sharp witted and intelligent person, even though he tried to hide it.

"Seems you still think people will make fun of you if they found out how smart you really were…if only you knew Natsu…" she thought this as she came to stand beside Lucy who was watching the Dragon Slayer.

The blonde-haired girl flinched as her mind wandered to what she could do to help the boy. Lucy had noted it a bit more on Tenrou Island, but Natsu was quite different from what she had first suspected. His happy-go-lucky attitude was always a blessing in disguise, but that moment when she had him come to her as she cried upon the ground in the face of Acnologia's attack, feeling impossibly feeble and small, he had been able to ease her fears. Natsu took her hand and she felt something change about her emotions towards him, and the warmth that had spread from her heart at seeing his comforting gaze left her with no doubts upon what her feelings had changed into; however, right then, the only thing she wanted to do was return the favor and bring him some form of comfort or reassurance on the girl he had found.

"Natsu, it'll be alright….because you found her and got her here as fast as you did, surely she'll…" he shook his head.

"Lucy, I know that you're trying to console me, and I appreciate it….but I don't think giving me a pep-talk about this is going to help right now, sorry…"

Lucy looked down as Porlyusica entered the room and they were all shooed away save for Natsu and Wendy. The group then returned to the hallway with Markarov as Levy and Jet came to join them, waiting for someone to tell them news on the girl. Lucy glanced to the door every few minutes, hoping for someone to relieve the sudden pressure that seemed to be hovering around all of them, and not too long after her tenth look at the door did something happen that caused them to rush in. A scream broke the silence and they flew into the room to find Porlyusica, Wendy, and Natsu struggling to hold the girl down as she thrashed while the healer attempted to stitch and apply a curative salve to a deep wound upon her stomach. Her long, black-hair streaked with its burnt chromes, golds, and coppers flew about and her eyes, pink with a slight gray undertone were wide, wild, and full of tears as she clawed at those who held her in place, panic evident as she did so.

"Come now child! Stop fighting us! We're trying to help you!" Porlyusica said sharply as Natsu tightened his grip upon the girl.

"Hey, come on now…it's okay….we're just trying to help you…." The girl stared up at him, her body visibly stiffened as Porlyusica used that time to apply the salve and stitch up the wound as he kept eye contact with her.

"There, now was that so bad? Honestly, with the way you were fighting, one would think that I was trying to stitch it up without using anything to numb the pain," Porlyusica stated as she picked up a blue glass bottle and approached the girl who was currently curled up in Natsu's grasp, holding onto him as if her life depended upon it.

"Is she going to be okay?" the healer looked to Wendy as she popped the cork on the bottle.

"She'll need to drink this to help with the infection she has from her wounds, in addition, it'll help her sleep. Natsu, give me a hand here…" Porlyusica told him as he looked down at the girl as she kept her head buried in his chest, holding to him like a lifeline.

"Why is she acting like this towards me? I don't get it…"

"Hey, you need to drink this potion to help you get better and get some rest. Don't worry, Porlyusica may seem scary, but she's a really big help to all of us and you can trust her," Natsu told the girl as she shakily blinked open her still dull eyes and glanced towards the woman.

"Listen to him dear, take this…" the girl was skittish, but soon Porlyusica was able to get her to take in the potion so long as Natsu kept a hand upon her.

"There, now she should be able to get some proper rest," the healer stated as Natsu moved away from the girl and let her be laid down. She wearily rested her head against the pillow as the Fire Dragon Slayer pulled the blankets over her and looked to the boy as though she wanted to speak with him; however, Natsu merely gave her a smile as the others watched him and he placed a gentle hand upon her head.

"Get some rest, you can talk tomorrow…so don't worry, you're safe now." The girl took in a steady breath and slowly closed her eyes before falling into a deep slumber.

"She seems to trust you," stated Markarov as the others continued to watch Natsu who seemed slightly conflicted by the statement.

"I don't get why…" the boy shrugged, unsure of what to think.

"Perhaps it is because you were her savior? Or, you quite possibly remind her of someone she knows," Carla suggested as she glanced towards the sleeping girl. Natsu looked to her once more.

"Who knows…." Soon Porlyusica sighed as she looked at the lot of wizards.

"No sense in fretting over it tonight. This girl needs plenty of rest and time to recover: worry about finding out about her once she's feeling better. And Natsu!" the woman stated as the boy jolted to attention.

"Um…yes ma'am?" the normally spirited Fire Dragon Slayer seemed very timid suddenly, which caused some of them to raise an eyebrow.

"You need to get changed out of those damp clothes and get yourself cleaned up. You look like death warmed over," she chided him as her dull brownish-pink eyes looked him over.

"Oh…um….right…" Natsu turned his gaze down again and walked past the others, planning to follow Porlyusica's demand and get himself warmed up and into clean clothes.

It was as he left that the others looked at the healer as she began packing away her belongings to return home for the evening. Rarely did Porlyusica become such a mother hen towards the children of the FairyTail Guild; however, there had always been a soft spot for them, they supposed. At the moment though, she wore an expression of being perplexed and even worried. The woman shook her head and looked to the others who were watching her and occasionally looking at the girl until the healer cleared her throat and they turned their attention fully to her. The woman frowned, her mind tinkering on a theory that seemed to have quite a firm foundation in the current situation, yet she was nearly hesitant to speak of it to the others present merely because she hadn't gathered evidence: then again, her assumptions were rarely wrong.

"If you ask me….she knows Natsu. Perhaps he doesn't remember her…but by her actions and behavior I can tell that she is at least familiar with him," she stated.

"You think that they know each other?" Markarov nodded at Porlyusica's statement.

"I thought so….but I couldn't be certain from where or how they could have crossed paths…" he stated as the others looked between them.

"Why would the two of you think they know each other? That's such a slim chance that it…" Porlyusica looked at the others with a glare.

"She'll have to explain that once she's lucid enough. For now I suggest letting her rest, and I wouldn't pester Natsu on it. I quite honestly don't think he realizes that they know each other and he's concerned enough as it is without that weighing on him," she stated.

"Very well….when will you return to check up on her?" the woman looked to Erza at her question.

"Over the next few days I'll be watching her for changes, but on my honor as a healer, she will recover under my care. Now, I need to go home and sleep: you've all drained me once again…" with that the woman stormed out and Markarov looked at the expressions on the other's faces.

"Not a word to Natsu on the subject, am I clear?" he asked.

"Yes sir…" they answered calmly; however none of them had the intention of truthfully obeying his order: since when did they anyways?

{Shower Rooms: 10:45pm}

Natsu sighed as he rested his forehead against the cool tile of the shower he was in. Since he had found the girl his head had begun to throb in a manner that was akin to the migraines that Lucy often described. Taking in a shuddering breath, the rose-haired Dragon Slayer took a moment to consider what the connection was between the headaches and the girl as well as the uncomfortable tug in the center of his chest that was accompanied by a strange sensation of relief and familiarity. Naturally, Natsu didn't believe he knew this girl, and yet some part of him felt as though he did know her. A fragmented part that had remained shut off in his mind for what felt like years and as he thought on it more, the more pain spread to his head. Growling, Natsu shut off the water and stepped out of the shower to begin drying off and getting himself dressed for the evening.

A few moments later, Natsu was dressed and drying his messy hair despite the raging headache that had developed. Soon enough though, he was tossing the towel into the hamper and grabbing his scarf off the rack near the heater before he exited the room only to be greeted with the others standing there in the hallway waiting for him. The people consisted of Erza, Gray, Gajeel, Lucy, Happy, Wendy, Carla, and Lily. With a sigh, he walked into the hall and started out into the main area of their rundown guildhall before taking a seat at one of the sparse tables. The moment he sat down he used the folded up scarf as a makeshift pillow and laid his head down upon the table as the throbbing in his skull continued while the others sat there in questioning.

Silence loomed over them as he sat there half-slumped over in faint exhaustion and irritation over the pounding in his head in addition to the nagging feeling that related to the unknown girl lying upstairs in the infirmary. Somehow, all of these things connected, but his mind was too tired and his head ached far too much for him to think on any of it clearly enough. Therefore, he sat at the table, surrounded by the others in a glum manner as he tried to consider how to do a few things: the main one being to get rid of the migraine. As they sat there though, a few of the others took note of several minor things in addition to Natsu apparently somber mood, and it was Erza who elected to break the silence.

"I wasn't aware that you had a scar there," she mentioned as she looked at the area on the side of his throat. The statement had caused the others to come a little closer to see what she was talking about, causing him to glance to the side as he looked to them, and unfortunately strain the skin there at the scar – making it all the more visible.

"It was a long time ago, so I didn't feel the need to talk about it or anything…" Wendy smiled to him.

"Then it's probably a bit of a personal explanation huh?" she inquired as Natsu sighed, rosy bangs falling into his eyes.

"Not really….it kind of happened before Igneel found me, so I just don't remember a lot about it…" Natsu felt the thrumming within his head continue, almost growing worse as he continued to talk.

"What do you mean?" Jade looked to chocolate brown as Lucy spoke. Natsu pondered her question carefully, and then looked to the side.

"I just don't really remember it, but…Ahh! Erza! What the hell?!" the pink-haired Fire Dragon Slayer looked at the Queen of the Fairies in disgruntlement for her actions of jabbing the scar on the side of his neck in what he knew had been curiosity to inspect it.

"Sorry, I was just checking…the scar is really thick, which means its deep enough to hit the jugular vein. How in the world did that not kill you?" she asked as Natsu glanced to the side, feeling a small tremor deep within his body as a strange flash of a memory came through his mind before dissipating.

"I told you…I don't remember! And please don't touch it! The nerves are still alive and they're…." a dark flush came to his features as she rose an eyebrow.

"Sensitive?" she inquired.

"Y-You could…say that…." His face darkened to the point that he buried his face into his scarf.

"Awh! Natsu's blushing!" stated Happy as dark-green eyes shot a withering glare at the blue feline.

"Shut up, you stupid cat!" Happy grinned as Carla and Lily looked to each other, both finding a bit of humor in Natsu's snappish remark and his apparent lack of tact when it came to conversation.

"Anyways…that girl…" the boy shot Gray a glare.

"Didn't Porlyusica and Master Markarov tell you guys not to bother me about that right now?" he asked as the others looked to him in surprise.

"You heard that?" Natsu rolled his eyes, a bit more of his tetchy personality coming out due to the pulsing migraine and the barrage of questions he was getting.

"Duh….you think being around a Dragon Slayer for all these years would have taught at least one of you that!" Gajeel interjected, and for once, Natsu was ecstatic that he did.

"What's that supposed to mean?" asked Gray.

"Dragon Slayers have heighted senses! Slush for brains! We can hear, see, and of course smell more than you can. But that also comes with touch and taste as well…..we have a lot of advantages to normal humans and other wizards in that department." Gajeel seemed almost boasting, but at current, Natsu could care less.

"So you guys are basically blood hounds," Gray stated in a slightly mocking tone.

"The best damn blood hounds you could ever have…" Erza sighed.

"Unless you count what it's like once our powers have reached maturity….then we have our one drawback…." Natsu stated and a cloud of foreboding fell upon the table.

"Motion sickness…" they all stated glumly.

"Yea, so I wouldn't be surprised if you start feeling like you've kicked in the gut when you're on transportation…it's a real bitch…" Carla frowned.

"Your language is rather crude, and what's more! You're setting a bad example for Wendy! She looks up to you Natsu!" she scolded.

"Sorry…but Igneel and other dragon's aren't all refined and don't have a specific preference when it comes to how you talk…well….I take that back actually….Igneel was a bit more refined than some of the others I ran into," Natsu stated in half-thought.

"Wait….others?! You're saying that you've met other Dragons?" all eyes turned to him and he sighed, head still threatening to split.

"This night just keeps getting better and better…"

"If I think about it, yea I met a handful of them when I was a kid…not too long before I guess they started disappearing…." Wendy looked to him in questioning.

"What kinds of Dragons did you meet?" she asked as Natsu thought about it for a moment despite the sharp pang it caused in his head.

"There was this one Dragon I remember…Idrisica, the Frost Dragon….she was really pretty and glowed almost silvery-white….I remember that she sang a lot and her roars were more melodic….but she didn't speak much, but was kind…way different from the Dragon we met on Tenrou….Acnologia…" Natsu felt his tone change as the memories resurfaced and alongside them new, or perhaps older ones did as well while his mind began piecing things back together and his head continued to throb.

"Salamander?" asked Gajeel.

"Just a question, but…did anyone else get the feeling that something was…off about that Dragon?" the two other Dragon Slayers looked to one another.

"I noticed it too…he smelt different from Metalicana and I bet that Igneel didn't smell like that thing did, huh?" Gajeel stated.

"No, he didn't…" Wendy nodded.

"I thought it was just me, but if you're both saying that the scent was off too…then..." Erza frowned.

"What are you three getting at?" she probed.

"The Dragon….it's scent wasn't right…..it smelt…like a human…" the others seemed a bit surprised by Natsu's statement, but quickly dismissed it.

"A human? But Natsu, that thing wasn't…." the rose-haired Dragon Slayer shook his head.

"I know that it was a Dragon Lucy….but that's not what I meant…the dragon had the scent of a human being….like to dragons we'll smell like one of them in our own right…" Gajeel shrugged.

"Mix between human and dragon scents – kind of a brick and hickory scent…brimstone and hickory if you count pyro here," he said, tilting his head towards Natsu who frowned.

"I don't want to hear it scrap heap!" Gajeel looked at the pink-haired teenager.

"You wanna start something?!" he asked. Natsu felt his head give a sharp throb and he placed a hand to it, wincing as he did so.

"Natsu?" the boy looked to them, eyes gleaming an unnaturally vibrant shade of green.

"I think I'm gonna head to bed now…my head is killing me..." Natsu stood in a wobbly manner, causing the others to become concerned.

"Are you staying here?" asked Erza.

"Y-Yea…if I go out there I'll just get drenched again…night…" with that he walked away, holding his head as he did.

Erza kept her thoughts to herself as the others turned in for bed throughout the night until she herself did the same. It was as she laid there that her mind wandered through what had happened during their conversation. Natsu had been subdued until the end where he had shown that for quite a bit he had been dealing with a severe migraine of some sorts; however, what had triggered the end of their conversations hadn't been just his headache, but the unnatural chill that had eased into the room. Erza was well aware of what Natsu was like when he was on edge, but in that moment she had felt something inhuman making itself known just enough for her to tell. It was the same sensation she had felt during their battles against the Oracion Seis and Grimior Heart; however, instead of it coming from his energy, it seemed to come from somewhere deep inside the boy: like a heartbeat of some sorts. A frown graced her pretty features and soon, Erza closed her eyes and elected to go to sleep for the time being.

{…..}

Here we are, on a journey that never ends...

{…..}

Author's Note: Whew! Rewriting stories is sometimes the hardest thing in the world. But, I think I managed to do a good job. I just want to let you guys know that I plan on drawing out and expanding upon certain situations to the best of my abilities and I hope that no matter what, when you guys are reading this, that you still love this story and that the alterations and expansions only endear it to you more. Well, tell me what you think, and I hope to read your comments about this chapter, and all those that follow it.

Arigatou! Nakamas!

Sincerely, ShadowDragon94.