His son was a monster.
When Igneel said that, it wasn't a father joking about a mischievous child - although that was certainly true. No, his son was a legitimate monster through and through. A demon. A devil.
But what could he do when the boy looked at him with such wide, dark eyes. Tiny mouth stained by whatever poor fool had managed to get between his child and what he wanted to eat.
It wasn't his fault he was born like this. Born with the bloodlust and hunger, a constant battle between the innocent morals of a child and the instincts of a killer. Even little as he was, the boy could tear away the throat from a fully grown man in seconds.
Tears boiled in Natsu's eyes, a sob ripping from trembling lips. Igneel dropped down in front of his child, taking a pocket square from his jacket to wipe his mouth clean from blood. It wouldn't change anything, but it would help hide the damage.
"Daddy, I'm sorry," He sobbed, small hands burning into his father's pants leg. Smoke billowed from the polyester fabric, melting in Natsu's hands and making the sticky fibers cling to his chubby fingers. Igneel made a mental note to eliminate all blended fabrics from the house as he cringed against the burning holes in his trousers. The fire starting was a recent development.
"I-It was an ac-accident," Natsu trembled as Igneel bent down to look his son in the eye.
"Tell me what happened Natsu, it's okay," He said patiently.
Small hands desperately tried to hide the smoke billowing from his palms. He was torn between wanting to hug his father for comfort, and keeping his hands to himself. Seeing his son's indecision, Igneel made the decision for him.
Slowly, so not to startle Natsu, he collected his hands in front of him and hugged his tiny, burning body to his chest. Smoke poured out between them, the heat from his son's distraught body causing Igneel's clothes to begin to melt.
But he endured it.
He endured it because he loved his son.
Natsu's hysterical sobs began to die down enough for him to understand what he was saying. He had been walking home from school when the hunger struck. It often came and left in waves. Sometimes it was manageable, other times it was not. But the result was always the same.
Natsu hungered for flesh.
It didn't matter what kind. Meat of any sort would work.
But when it struck out in the open, randomly, without any preparation well - accidents happened.
Natsu's instincts had taken over, ravenous thirst for flesh fueling him to sink his teeth into the nearest warm body of flesh he had in the vicinity.
"Are still they alive?" Igneel asked Natsu.
The boy gave his father a weak, confused nod.
Igneel almost wished Natsu had killed him. With a quiet sigh, he nudged him off to his room with orders to clean up while Igneel dealt with the body left behind in his son's hunger.
As he slid a rain coat over his shoulders and grabbed baseball bat between shaky hands, Igneel couldn't help but wonder...
...What kind of life was his son going to lead?