The battlefield had gone silent, nothing left but the wind blowing across the burned ground, stirring up ashes around the two in the middle of it.

Natsu was kneeling over Lucy, gripping her hand like a lifeline, unable to stop the tears that trailed down his cheeks as his eyes scanned over the fatal wounds.

"Lucy, please…" He mumbled between sobs, gripping her hand tighter "Dear God please don't leave me…"

The blonde beneath him smiled sadly eyes shining with emotion "Don't worry Natsu… there's always the next life…" She said softly, as the life left her body.

Natsu's eyes were wide with horror, as he felt soul-crushing deja vu wash over him. The next life? How many times had she died? Was she destined to die again and again?

"Lucy…" His strained voice whispered, brushing his fingertips against her cheek "I'll find you again and again… And one day… I'll save you. Even at the cost of my own existence." He promised, standing as her body shimmered, fading away.

Natsu picked up a knife from the body of a soldier's corpse "Wait for me, Lucy…" He said, before plunging the blade through his heart.

Present Day, Magnolia

Lucy twirled her pencil as she stared at her notebook page, which should've been filled with notes, was filled with doodles. Doodles of fairies, wisps, dragons, shadows, and a sharp, heated glare.

She wasn't quite sure when she started seeing these things, just that it had been very recent, and she was very sure she was going crazy. A fairy even danced across her book as she thought of it, and Lucy shooed it away absentmindedly.

The eyes though… She had suddenly decided eyes as black as the abyss and as colorful as the rainbow all at once would be pretty hot, because she couldn't get the vision out of her head since her 17th birthday last month.

Relief flooded the teen as the final bell rang, so she could finally pack up her stuff and exit this hell hole, full of people who never understood her.

As she exited the building, and made her way towards home, she couldn't help but feel someone was following her. She felt the hair stand on end on the back of her neck as she waded through crowds of people.

Surely she was just being self conscious…

Best leave these problems for tomorrow, she decided.

It was around 3 A.M. when Lucy heard her doorbell ring. The poor girl was startled out of her sleep at the sound, and stared at her bedroom door, contemplating if she should go or not, as it might be a stalker… But something told her to at least go see.

She carefully slid out of bed, grabbing a baseball bat on the way, and crept to her front door, frowning at how the temperature seemed oddly warm, despite the fall weather outside her apartment.

Lucy stood on tiptoe to look through the peephole to see… A man with pink hair? He looked around her age, had a deep tan and a spray of freckles over his nose, and sharp onyx eyes staring over at the door.

He was handsome, to say the least 'if not hot' A voice whispered in the back of her head, making her blush.

"Are you gonna sit there evaluating me all day or you gonna open the blasted door?" He finally snapped, pushing off of the wall he was leaning on, making Lucy gasp lightly.

"I-I have no clue who you are though!" She argued, and saw hurt flash across his face momentarily, before he regained his composure, and walked right up to the door.

"You don't." He stated "But I spent the last damn month searching for you, I'm not just gonna leave."

Lucy felt a tick of annoyance press against her forehead. He was certainly a stubborn one "How do I know you aren't the one who's been following me?" She accused, paying close attention to hi expression, as it morphed from agitation, shock, then concern.

"Someone's following you?" He whispered urgently, and Lucy heard a soft thud against her door as the stranger placed his palms firmly against it.

Lucy thought back to earlier, something about his tone telling her this was a real problem "I-I don't know, it was just a feeling-"

"Always trust your instinct." He cut her off "It's one of your greatest weapons."

'Weapon? Why would she need that?'

"Shit-LUCY BEHIND YOU!" He cried suddenly, and at first Lucy thought it was some kind of prank, but was glad she turned, as she barely managed to duck in time as a silver knife slashed at her.

She screamed in horror and scrambled to her feet, rushing to her bedroom, not getting a good look at her attacker as she slammed the door shut, locking it.

The shadows under the door began quivering, before sliding under the door, and bubbling into the figure of a shadowy person, wielding many knives.

Lucy was frozen in place from shock, not registering the being raising its spectral arm to attack again, and she slammed her eyes shut as the knives descended upon her.

Pain never came as someone was suddenly standing in front of her, shielding her. The man from before… But how did he get inside?

Lucy looked over to see the window above her bed opened, and was agitated at first, but decided not to hold it against him, as he was currently saving her life.

"Poor kid has been possessed by his shadow…" The guy in front of her said, almost sadly, before the area around him erupted in flames, which surprisingly didn't burn Lucy, and could she see the outline of horns and a tail on him?

The fire burned away the shadow, leaving a boy from Lucy's class, Rogue Cheney, a polite, soft-spoken boy, who wouldn't wish harm upon a butterfly.

"Wh-What… Who…?" She asked, bewildered, as she looked up at him, curiosity dancing in her eyes.

"I can't explain everything... But my name is Natsu Dragneel, and your fate and mine are intertwined." The man called Natsu said, picking up the boy and placing him outside her door carefully.

"Fate… I've never believed in things like that" Lucy murmur into the darkness.

"Good." Natsu said as he perched himself in her window, ready to leave "Because fate is a bitch." And with that he jumped down, disappearing into her night, leaving Lucy's head spinning.

'What on Earth just happened…?'