Taku's POV (Age 10)

I woke up to the sun shining on my face. I groaned. I didn't want to be awake. If I was awake, it means it's the next day and that means I have to go to school. Seriously, what did they except us kids to think about it? Most of us hate it. Some more than others. I am part of that some. It doesn't help that I am the only one that is new at this place as well as the fact that everyone knew everyone. I miss my old village. My home.

"Taku! Get up, darling!"

I heard my mother shout from the dining room. I sighed. I quickly got up and got on my day clothes. I walk to the dining room and my mother smiles at me. I look around the dining room.

"Where's pops?"

"Your dad had to leave early. We are new here and he has to find a place to work as soon as he can."

"Will he be able to find one?"

"Of course, darling. That's what moving here will do for us."

I knew that my dad had to leave his work. It hit us hard. He worked in the crystal mines and had worked there since he was a few years older than me. My mother put down a plate that had eggs and a glass of water. I quickly ate the food and my mother walked me to school. I dreaded each step. When we got to the gate, my mother kissed the top of my head and we parted ways. I looked at the school. It was bigger and there were more kids. Many also seemed like they were older kids as well as kids my own age.

I stared at the building for a while. I quickly shut my eyes as I felt a sudden pain shot through my head. I had suddenly got one of the headaches that happen at random. My parents don't know why I get them, nor does any doctor we had gone too. They come and go. And when they come... I don't always see good things.

I slowly opened my eyes and was shocked to see the school was burned down to ashes. There was nobody there. My mouth dropped. What happened? It was fine! I started to panic a little. I backed up and ran into someone. I quickly turn around, scared.

"Hey! Watch where you are going!"

I looked at the boy I ran into. He was definitely looked older. He looked to be about maybe fifteen years old. He had pitch black hair, his eyes where the same color as his hair. He was looking down at me. He may be taller than me by two feet, at least, maybe more.

"I... I..."

Curse my inability to talk to humans.

"Zeref, cut it out. He's just a kid. He looks to be new. I don't remember seeing him."

A girl with blond hair, that was tied back walked over to us. Great, another person. The older boy looks at the girl. She appears to be around the same age as him.

"Sorry, you're right Anna."

The boy looked at me.

"I'm sorry for that. You're new here, aren't you?"

I just nod my head, too scared to speak.

"Well, I'm Zeref, this is Anna."

"I... um... I'm Taku..."

Anna smiles at me.

"It's alright. We don't bite. Well, I don't"

"Anna, if you are trying to make me sound bad, stop. I already scared him; you don't have to make him more afraid of me."

Zeref crosses his arms. Anna giggled. They seem close. I wonder how long they've known each other. Probably a while.

"Oh, come on, lord of darkness, I'm just messing with you."

"Hey, you keep that nickname to yourself!"

"Not my fault you deal with black magic."

Wait... What? I've heard of people that can do magic. Not many can, but one could learn. I heard that black magic is dark magic. Did this kid practice dark magic?

"Uh... what do you mean by... by...? black magic? Can... can you really do magic?"

"Huh? Oh, yeah. I can. So can Anna. She can summon spirits from another world."

"I have to have a spirit key, idiot. It isn't like I can summon a real person from this world."

"That... That sounds cool... Uh... Could I see... sometime?"

The two exchange looks. Zeref scratches the back of his neck, clearly, he was uncomfortable. Idiot! Anna kneeled down and put her hand on my shoulder.

"Zeref isn't... good, with his magic. He could hurt you if not careful. I can show you mine, although... Not every spirit is easy to deal with. I'll show you my best spirit when I can. Sound good?"

I thought about it. I think it would be really cool to see a spirit. I mean, are they see through? Do they look human? What exactly is a spirit? How does she summon it? I nodded my head at her. She smiled. Zeref chuckled and rolled his eyes.

"Well, kid, you better head to class. You don't want to be late."

He was right, except... The school was burned down in less than a second.

"I can't... The school is burned down."

They looked at me like I was making this up.

"Uh, you sure about that?"

Zeref pointed to the building I had seen. It was completely fine. How could that be?

"Zeref, don't be rude. He could just be nervous. Jeez. Just think about that."

"Right. Sorry."

I started to feel a little uncomfortable. I always make a mistake like this. I let out a sigh. These stupid hallucinations. I hate them. Just another reason to avoid people. They always think I am crazy.

I turned to the building. It was perfectly fine. Maybe I am crazy.

I left Zeref and Anna and went to my own classroom. No one talked to me in the classroom. That was fine with me. They had their own group and I can guarantee they don't want the new kid within those groups. While the teacher taught, I stared out the window. I kept seeing different kids out in the field. One minute they're there, the next they're gone. I even saw some kids from my own class. I didn't understand. I couldn't understand. Why do I see things that aren't there?

My daily routine consisted of me getting up, going to school, and staring out the window. I would speak only when I needed to, and I would avoid people when I could. The only person I couldn't get away from was Anna. And since I couldn't get away from Anna, I couldn't get away from Zeref. They were always together. For a while I tried to avoid them, but found that to be impossible. I soon gave up and just let it be.

They were interesting people to hang around. They would have these mini arguments, and then start laughing. They often greeted each other with a hug. I'm glad they didn't do that to me. That would mean physical contact with people. I think they could tell that I wasn't a fan of any contact. They still hung around me. I felt as if they were just babysitting me. They were older than me, yet they still felt the need to watch me? I bet they really were just watching me. Why would a couple of teens want to hang around a kid? Not just any kid, a freak.

After a while, I grew to like their company. I thought they did as well, until Zeref started to act strange. Did I do something? He started to avoid me and was more nervous and skittish. Now every time I saw him, I wore a frown on my face. Anna noticed this.

"Taku? Are you okay?"

"I don't know... Zeref... he is avoiding me. I thought we were friends. Maybe I misinterpreted what we were."

Anna began to laugh. Even though I love hearing her laugh, I didn't understand what was funny. I don't recall saying a joke. I had a confused look on my face.

"Did... did I say something funny?"

"Well, Zeref isn't avoiding just you. Any small kid in general. You see, Zeref is currently a little nervous. You see, Zeref is about to be an older brother."

I stared at her. What did she mean by that? Zeref is about to be an older brother? Does that mean that Zeref is going to have a sibling?

"Zeref... Is going to have a sibling?"

"Yes, and he is really stressed out about it. He thinks he will mess up at being a big brother."

"That doesn't explain why he was avoiding me."

"He thinks, as of this moment, any small kid that is near him, may cause them to get hurt. He has that reputation, ya know."

"You mentioned it before, but I thought it was just those rumors."

"They are, mostly, but he isn't taking any chances. Don't worry. I'll get him to come back to his senses."

Huh... A big brother. Never thought that Zeref was one to worry about something such as this. It is a side I have never seen before.

"At least he isn't mad at me."

Anna laughs.

"Sweetheart, he could never be mad at you. Before this news, he saw you as his own little brother, in terms of course."

I didn't know that. I could never read people well. I tried so hard to understand what they felt, but I just didn't get it. I knew my own emotions, but I didn't like to express them. I only expressed them to my family. By family, I mean my parents. I am an only child, always was, and I have no known other family. I have never met them. It was always hard for me to be near new people. I just haven't found a way to get rid of these two yet. I do think that I no longer want them to leave. I like their company. It is... nice. Anna goes over and hugs me. I quickly hugged her back.

Suddenly Zeref came running to us. He was out of breath and seemed panicked. Anna looked over at him.

"Zeref? What's wrong?"

"My…. Mom… she…. Child… help… doctor…"

Anna's eyes widened.

"Zeref, don't you remember, Doctor Sian is out in the next town over. I thought that your mother wasn't due for another few weeks!"

"That's what we thought! What am I going to do!?"

I looked at Zeref. I walked up to him and tapped his shoulder. He looked over at me.

"Uh, my parents were doctors."

"They…. Are? Will they come, please?"

"I can try."

"Thank you."

We ran to my house and quickly explained the situation to my parents. They exchanged looks before heading over to Zeref's house. As we were heading over there, I realized I have never been to his house before. (I don't think I have been to Anna's either) We made it to his home pretty quicky. I wonder how I never noticed that we were this close to each other. When we went into the house, we could hear Zeref's mother crying out in pain. I suddenly became as nervous as Zeref. My parents went to his mother, so I grabbed Zeref's hand. He seemed surprised at first. He gave me a soft smile, as if to say that everything will be okay. This idiot, wasn't it his mother who was in pain? He shouldn't comfort me, but the other way around… right?

~time passing~

Zeref and I ended up falling asleep on his couch. When I woke up, it was because Zeref had moved. I opened my eyes and saw him walking to the other room. I quickly followed behind. Anna was already in there. My parents were standing near the window, letting Anna and Zeref close to Miss. Dragneel. Zeref was looking at a small bundle in his mother's arms. Curse my short child height. Anna took notice of me and motioned for me to come closer. I was able to see the small child in Miss. Dragneel's arms.

"Zeref, my dear boy. Do you wish to hold your little brother?"

"I…."

Zeref couldn't talk. It was strange to see him at a lost for words. Instead of talking, he nodded his head. His mother gave him the child and Zeref was just mesmerized by him. Zeref final realized I was next to him. He knelt down and I looked at the young child in his arms. He was so small. Was that normal? He just seemed so… fragile. His mother had black hair, but this child had pink hair. He hardly looked like Zeref at all. I looked at Zeref. He took after his mother, so I guess this little guy took after his father.

"Taku? Wanna hold him?"

"Huh?"

"You can hold him, just be careful."

I have never held a child before. When I held him, I knew that he was going to have a great life. I don't know how, but I did. I smiled and held him a little closer to me.

"What are you going to name him, Lyra?"

Lyra, that must be Zeref's mom. Lyra smiled.

"We had a few names picked out, but because he was born near in summer, we want to name him Natsu."

Natsu… Hello, little Natsu. I gave Natsu back to Lyra. He was so small and light for a child, but then again, I wouldn't really know. Zeref, Anna and I headed out. My parents stayed behind to make sure everything will be okay since he was born so early.

"Hey, Taku, thank you."

"What did I do?"

"You stayed calm while I was panicking, you helped me calm down. My father wasn't here for he was with Doctor Sian. He usually travels with him. I'm glad that your parents were able to help."

"It was no big deal."

"It was to me."

He paused for a moment.

"Taku, if anything happens to me, I want you to promise that you will look after Natsu. Make sure he stays safe. Can you do that?"

"Huh? I, why me?"

"Well, after today, you aren't just my friend. You are family. We look out for each other. So, can you promise me?"

I nodded.

"Yeah, okay. I promise."

We spent the rest of the day just wondering around town. I will say that this was the best day. If only it had last.

A week had past and I was over at Zeref's house pretty often. I loved watching Natsu. He was always so happy. He even had black onyx eyes like his brother. I guess that's something they share. It was late so I headed home. When I got home, the house was quiet. I walked around the house. Where are my parents? I wish I didn't return home. I walked into the main room of our house and what I found was something out of a nightmare. My parents laid in a pool of their own blood. Someone tricked my parents into letting them in, and they killed them in their own home. Why? Why them? I didn't know what to do. I ran out of my house crying. I ran into the woods that was next to my house. I didn't want to go to town! Someone there killed my parents! My family! I couldn't see where I was going. It started to pour down rain. That caused the forest to become even darker, yet I kept running. It wasn't real. They weren't dead. They can't be!

I tripped over a root and couldn't catch myself and fell. I stumbled and rolled down the hill. My body got all scratched up. I felt so much pain. I forced myself to get up. I wiped my eyes and looked down at myself. I was coved in scratches, mud, and blood. I was soaking wet. Where was I? I looked around. Where was the town? Where was my home? I…. I didn't care. I kept walking. After some time, I collapsed.

When I woke up, I found myself in a bed. I was only wearing pants; my body was cleaned from the mud and my wounds were wrapped up. I sat up and I felt my body aching. I looked around. I was in what looked to be… a tree? Was I in a tree? I got out of the bed and walked a little bit. It hurt, but I needed to know where I was. I looked out and turns out, I was in a tree. I looked around and I saw a strange woman before me.

She had orange-red hair that had white tips. She was tall and she was wearing a white top with a red skirt. What stood out the most about her was the fact that she had fox ears and a tail. She turned and her eyes landed on me. Her eyes were like a fox's eyes. What was she?

"Oh, hello my dear, are you okay?"

"Uhhhh."

"Oh, you must be hungry, here, have some fruit. It'll help."

She smiled at me. She walked over to me and handed me a red apple. I took it from her and that's when I realized how hungry I was. I ate the apple and looked at the lady in front of me. She was not human.

"So, little one, what happened? You were hurt and all muddy… you were crying too."

I hung my head at the memory of my parents. Unlike before I couldn't cry. Why was I like this?

"My parents were killed."

The vixen gasped.

"Oh, I am so sorry, little one."

She went silent and hummed to herself.

"Do you have anywhere to go?"

Did I? I don't know why they were killed. What if someone who was close to me was the reason they were killed? What did they do to deserve that fate? They shouldn't have died. I should have. Not them. They were good people.

"No…. I don't."

"Well, you can stay with me. What's your name?"

"Um, Taku, and you are?"

"My name is Rekka."

"Why are you helping me? And…. What are you?"

"Well, I am a Kitsune. A fox spirit. As for helping you. I guess you can say, I sense something special about you. Something that we share."

"What could I share with a fox spirit?"

"You spirit."

"What?"

"Well, your magic to be exact."

"I don't have any magic."

"Oh, but you do. It isn't something that can be taught to another, you must be born with it. I can tell you have it. Your spirit is strong."

She frowned, knelt down and looked me dead in the eyes.

"I have this same ability, and I knew that they were after you. I could tell they weren't happy with two rifters in the same time period. They went after you because they know that you can't control it and that you are young. They killed your parents, when they were actually after you. They thought it was one of them for they didn't think it could have been such a young boy."

"What?"

"Human greed is so much. It over takes them. They fear what they can't control. They know about us monsters and they tried to wipe us out. They failed. They tried to end you because in their eyes, you are a monster."

"My parents died because I was the one they were after?"

"Your magic is powerful that it can be sensed by string magic users, so they must have sensed it on your parents and made that mistake."

"I…. wait, how do you know this?"

"I know this because of our ability. We can see realities of our world and others. I saw the outcome of this one."

"How do you know I have this ability."

"Have you ever seen things that weren't there? Like an extra person, a different building? Have headaches beforehand? Those are visions of other places and that is a side effect because you haven't learned to control it."

This was so much to take in. I needed time to think. She sensed that and pushed me inside and told me to rest. Rekka, the Kitsune. Not what I was expecting from a fox spirit, but good to know that she was nice to do this. I thought about everyone I left. Anna, Zeref, Natsu… I will miss them, but I can't go back. I can't. Sorry Zeref, I can't keep my promise.

~Skip a month~

Rekka has been training me for a while. She is the only one I trust. I haven't let any of her friends get close to me for I didn't want to succumb to the same fate my parents did. I hope Anna and Zeref are okay….

"I will now teach you to open a rift to a new reality. This is dangerous, but I trust you can handle it. You learn quickly."

She made a simple demonstration with her hands and it looked easy enough. I tried to copy her, and it was working, until it spilt open and went out of control. The rift acted as a blade sliced the left side of my face. This was the worst pain I have ever been in. I was crying out in pain for a while before I passed out. I was lucky Rekka was able to heal me, but I will always have this scar on my face.

After a few days, some bird came to see Rekka. She was yelling at Rekka. It was about me. I knew it was because she yelled at Rekka for keeping a human boy. She looked like she was going to attack Rekka. I was still hurt, but I didn't care. I didn't want Rekka to get hurt! I rushed out and went in front of Rekka.

"NO! Don't hurt her! Hurt me instead! She is in trouble because of me….."

The bird looked shocked. She clearly wasn't expecting that.

"Taku, Carys wasn't going to hurt me. She is really quite gentle. She was just being protective of me. She thought that you would hurt me. She was just proven wrong."

"It seems I was."

Carys smiled at me.

"I shall return, child. Until we meet again."

With that she flew off and that adrenaline rush I had left me and I felt that pain again. I still wasn't better. Rekka took me back inside and put me to rest.

~Time skip to when he is 15 years old~

I was walking through the forest when I came across a red dragon. Dragons aren't the nicest, so I better stay away. Something, however, caught my attention. The dragon was talking to a small boy. That was a human child. What was he doing in the woods? He must have wondered in here and the dragon is tricking that child so he can kill and devore him. I stayed out of sight and scent of the dragon for a while and watched them. He hasn't done anything yet, but dragons are clever. It was getting late and the dragon and child soon went to sleep. I was able to run in, grab the boy and get out. When I felt we were safe, I put him down.

I looked at him. He wasn't hurt, that's good. Wait, why does he look familiar? The boy opened his eyes and looked around.

"Igneel?"

"Hey, kid, you alright?"

"Yes, but where is Igneel?"

"Igneel?"

"He's my dad. We just went to sleep."

"Uhhhh, you fell asleep next to a dragon."

"That's Igneel! That's my father!"

"What? You are human."

"Igneel is my father! I'm a dragon!"

He puffed his cheeks and tried to look tough.

"I am a dragon. Fire Dragon's Roar!"

He breathed a tiny little flame. It was actually cute. I thought about it, and this kid wasn't in real danger. The dragon had so many opportunities. Maybe I misread the situation.

"Does that dragon care for you?"

"uh-huh, I'm his son! He loves me and I love him!"

"You're lucky you have your dad."

"What about you?"

"Me?"

"Yeah…."

"…...My parents are dead."

"Then who raised you?"

"A Kitsune. She was there for me for the last five years of my life."

"Then she is your mom."

"What?"

"She raised you, so she adopted you. Your mom."

This kid… I walked the child back and the dragon was awake. Dragons are territorial so I may be in trouble. However, this dragon didn't punish me. He let me stay the night. It was rather strange. It was strange. What struck me was that his name was Natsu. Where have I heard his name before. It felt like that name was from my buried past. For a while I only stayed for a few hours, sometimes a whole day. The hours turned to days, days to weeks. I grew close with Natsu and he even started to call me his uncle. I decided to ask him why.

"A guy who visits my dad said that's what you were to me."

"Pardon?"

"This black-haired guy comes and my dad goes and talks to him. He told me that a guy named Taku was my uncle. You are my family!"

Black-haired guy? Natsu? No way. The age matched, everything about him fit…. This was Natsu Dragneel…. Zeref's little brother…. How did I miss that? I haven't seen them in forever….. But…. If Natsu was adopted by this dragon, something happened to his parents. My village? What happened to it? I told Natsu I would be back. I went to see my long-forgotten past. I wish I never stepped foot near there. The village was burned to the ground. Skeletons and corpses were burned and scatter the grounds. This was no accident. Someone, no, some creature attacked this place. These were dragon scorch marks. A dragon killed everyone…. How ironic that Natsu now lives with a dragon.

I walked back and ran into a long forgotten old friend.

"Z-Zeref?"

"Hello, Taku. It's been a while."

"Hey."

"You've grown. What happen to the little kid that I used to hang out with?"

"He died with his parents."

"Right…. Your parents…. If you want to know, we found the ones who killed them. He got his punishment, but he said he never hurt you. Didn't see you. We looked for you, but you were gone. Natsu and Anna missed you."

"How is Anna?"

"She is fine. Our relationship grew apart over the years. She didn't like what I was doing. I saved my brother though."

"You cursed him."

"How do you-"

"My own magic. It can let me see realities."

"You really have grown."

"Zeref… he died… with your parents…. You…. You cursed yourself in the process."

"And I will manage to undo what has been done, and keep my little brother alive."

"But-"

"Just keep that promise of yours until then."

I said nothing and just nodded. He smiled and headed off. I would not see him for a while. I stayed true to my word and watched over Natsu. As the days past I really did see him as my nephew. Igneel saw this and pulled me away to talk.

"Boy, I will not always be here to guide my troublesome son. Promise, when I am not there you will protect him."

"Igneel, I promise, I will do anything to protect him. I already promised his brother."

"Good. I put my trust in you."

Everyone does it seems. I'm not special, so why?

I waled back to the Lake. It was peaceful.

"Uncle Taku! Uncle Taku!"

I look over at Natsu running over to me.

"What is it, my young Nephew?"

"I learned a new spell! It's called Fire Dragon Iron fist!"

"That's wonderful. I-"

I got a vision. I saw Natsu…. All grown up…. There was a blue cat, red-headed girl, a raven-haired male, and a blond girl. They all looked close. This was another part of my powers. I could see what could be what is to come. I look at Natsu. He is so small. So innocent. This world was cruel to him to take his home and family from him. No. Igneel is his Family. Zeref is his family. I am his family. He made me feel like I finally had a place with someone. I smiled at him. It hit me that I haven't smiled since I left that town. Since I left my old life behind. Natsu….. You saved me…... from now on, let me save you. I promise… I'll so what I can.

This is the Taku's Backstory and I will end it there. I really love this character and I may use him again for a short story in my oneshot book. I could expand more on his character than what I already have, but this is good for now. I hope this clears up the rest of the confusion. If not, feel free to ask. Thank you for reading.

~Zolf

Posted: 11/18/2020