The walk home took far longer than Lucy expected. She'd been too in her own head and walked right past the train station. She just followed the footpath next to the road instead and she'd only realized her mistake when she was already halfway home. Truthfully, she couldn't focus on anything other than the fact that she was now unemployed. E.N.D followed a few paces behind her. She couldn't tell if she was walking faster than usual or if he was tailing her on purpose. She didn't care.

"So, where we goin'?"

Lucy didn't even look behind her. She barely recognized her own voice when she told him, "Home."

"Cool."

Honestly, this man had just cost her the job of her dreams and he didn't even apologize. "You don't have to follow me, you know? I can work this out by myself."

He quickened his pace to catch up with her. An old woman in a car slowed down to shake her head at him. Lucy realized he was still shirtless. "I kind of do," he explained. "You summoned me. I can go out here and there and do my own thing but I always have something pulling me back. I'm tied to you for now. It's like… It's just a very strong urge. You get that, right?"

That made Lucy stop in her tracks and turn to face him. He stared into her eyes but she was too furious to notice how he searched them. If she did, she would have wondered what he was looking for. "So I'm stuck with you, is what you're saying?"

E.N.D nodded, his hair moving slightly in the breeze. "We demons are like you guys like that. We're just as much slaves to our urges as you are."

She scoffed. "That's not something you tell a girl when you've been following her for the last half hour. Take your urges and shove them."

He placed a hand over his chest in mock offence. "So rude." Those light chocolate eyes he'd been watching rolled so far into the back of her head he wondered if it hurt. "But yeah, you're stuck with me and I'm stuck with you. Didn't you wonder how I'd found your work before?"

Lucy's eyebrows came together in thought. "No, I didn't have much time to think between you punching security and getting me fired."

E.N.D took a step towards her and she stepped back to maintain her distance. He placed a hand around her bicep to steady her. She wanted to pull herself away, but she didn't. "Well do you know what that means?" She shook her head slowly.

The sun was behind her and illuminated his eyes. They didn't look so dark in the light. Here, she could make out his pupils. A shiver started in her spine and made her rattle her head when she noticed they weren't round like she'd expect. The were slitted like a lizard. "It means you can't run from me. Wherever you go, I'll find you."

He ran his palm up and down her arm, feeling the goosebumps that had risen on her skin. His gaze followed suit and Lucy watched as his tongue slipped out and smoothed over his lips, an action so quick she wasn't sure if she'd imagined it or not. The expression was one of hunger. And it was then that Lucy wondered if his playfulness wasn't so playful in reality. Did he enjoy the chase? Was he simply toying with his food?

She finally pulled away and kept walking. Behind her, he allowed himself to fall back. Not another word was exchanged between them, and Lucy didn't bother to wait for him to catch up as she turned a corner and lost sight of him. She knew he'd find his way home regardless.

E.N.D and Lucy had gone home to change and collect themselves. She was almost grateful for his presence when he lifted the door and placed it back in the frame when she was inside. Almost, until she remembered that it was broken because of him to begin with. She'd changed into a pink tracksuit and she'd thrown another of Adrian's shirts at him. This time, she was sure he'd notice it was gone, it was one of his favorites. It was expensive, a luxury brand. Lucy never understood why he'd spend upwards of two hundred dollars on a shirt, but it gave him joy so she never questioned it. Lucy begged E.N.D to be careful with it, lest it end up like the other shirt, singed and discarded over her balcony. When he'd protested, she'd insisted that he couldn't go walking around the city without a shirt. It's just not what humans did. She begged him to at least try to fit in.

Luckily, Lucy's mother didn't live far from her. She was only two blocks away; Layla wouldn't let her move any farther. Layla's house was small. The red bricks and colorful garden stuck out like a sore thumb in the area intersecting the suburbs and the city. She knocked and waited for her mother to call her in, E.N.D behind her.

"Stay outside," she told him, and closed the door in his face.

Lucy walked through the threshold and down the hallway. Although she hadn't been living away from home for very long, she already felt nostalgic whenever she stepped into her mother's house. It was a homely place full of soft hand knitted throw blankets and furniture that was so old, the varnish was beginning to scratch away. Her mother covered the fridge in magnets and photos, and Lucy could hear the gentle song of a wind chime that hung on the back balcony. It still smelled the same; like cinnamon cookies.

Standing at the hallway's intersection of the kitchen and the dining room, was Layla. Her hair wasn't as bright as Lucy's, and her brown eyes were magnified behind thick prescription frames, but nobody could say she wasn't her mother. She would have been her mirror image in her younger years.

"Lucy darling," Layla greeted and pulled her daughter into a hug. "I was wondering when you were going to visit!"

Lucy hesitated before pulling away, not wanting to terminate the contact just yet. "Sorry, mom. I've been really busy."

"Well, that's life for you," she replied and went to the kitchen. She didn't ask if Lucy wanted a drink, but she started on pouring a glass of juice anyhow. She was about to put the juice back in the fridge when E.N.D crept around the corner. Layla's eyebrows stretched in surprise, but she poured another glass. "And who might this be?"

"This is… Brad? Yes, this is Brad." She gave him a scowl when her mother turned her back. So much for staying outside. "A friend of mine."

Layla handed the glasses to the pair and greeted him. "A friend? Well, you'll always be welcome here, darling."

Lucy expected him to reply with something snide, or maybe simply turn on his heels and walk away. But he nodded in thanks and marveled, "Wow, you really do look like Anna. Even more than Lucy does."

Layla was taken aback. "You… knew my mother?" She let her eyes rake up and down his frame, probably thinking he looked much too young to be saying he knew Anna.

"Yes, I-"

"No! I was uh, I showed him old family photos at home is all," Lucy interjected before he could blow her cover.

The older woman's eyebrows raised even higher if that were possible. Her expression gave away exactly what she had surmised in her head, and Lucy cringed. Layla was never quiet on the fact that she absolutely despised Adrian, always saying she didn't trust him and that she would wait for the day Lucy would wise up and leave him for a 'good man'. Truthfully, Lucy could see where she was coming from, but daily life kept her thoughts busy. Lucy just didn't want to lonely.

"Oh, well that makes sense, then." She beckoned them to follow her through to the dining room where they sat at a scratched and tattered dining table, evidence of many meals and family gatherings etched over the finish. Once settled, Layla came to stand behind E.N.D and rested a hand on his shoulder but pulled away as if he'd electrocuted her. She rubbed her wrist before touching the same hand to his forehead. "Sweetheart, you're so warm. Are you not feeling well?"

He craned his neck back to look up at her. "What? This is natural, you should know that?"

Layla hummed, and Lucy jumped in again to explain that it was very hot out and they'd walked. She assured her mother that Brad was fine. Nevertheless, E.N.D talked his way into a plate of brownies and when Layla left the room to collect them, the smile she wore for her mother melted away to make way for a glare.

"She doesn't know anything about you. As far as she's concerned, you're completely normal. Stop."

"Her too?" he asked and then let his voice fall to a whisper when Lucy shushed him. "She's not a witch either? But she's Anna's daughter."

"Yeah, that's right. I don't want her knowing anything. It would just stress her out. Really, really badly."

He placed his elbows on the table. "Well how is she gonna help us if she doesn't even know what's going on?"

"I'm working on it, alright? Just give me a minute."

Layla came back with a warmed plate of brownies in hand. She set them in front of E.N.D and sat down opposite both he and Lucy. For a while, Lucy let her ramble on about how her day was and Lucy danced around the truth when Layla asked her how work was going. She didn't explicitly say she got fired that morning, but she also didn't say she was still employed.

By the time the sun began to set, Lucy decided to get to the bottom of things. "So mom, about those recipe books you gave me the other day-"

Layla cut her off. "Oh yes, have you tried them out yet, honey? Your grandmother was a great cook, you know."

Lucy cringed a little before straightening out. "Well, yeah. I tried one. It didn't turn out as well as I'd thought it would." She gave E.N.D a look. He snickered. He was having fun watching Lucy struggle.

The older woman turned to E.N.D, the smile melting from his face. "Don't listen to her, dear. Lucy always talks herself down. She's a great cook!"

His amusement grew right back. "Oh believe me, don't I know it?"

Lucy wanted to hit him. She withheld it for later. "Mom, did you ever try any recipes?"

Layla lent back in her chair and folded her hands across her lap. "I can't say that I have. She'd never let me see them, she was really protective about them. Even with me, her own daughter. It caused us a bit of fuss when I was growing up. Anyway, when she passed, God rest her soul, I'd packed a lot of her stuff away in the attic I don't think they've even seen the outside of that place until you found them, Luce."

E.N.D went for another brownie.

Lucy tried another avenue. "Did she have many friends?"

"Oh, yes. She was a very popular woman. To this day, I can't think of anyone ever saying a bad word about her. She used to bring a group of women over sometimes and I'd play with their daughters. If I recall-"

Lucy had accidentally triggered another of her mother's never ending stories. This information extraction could be trickier than she had anticipated. Glancing over to E.N.D, she noticed his plate was empty so she said, "Mom, do you mind if I get Brad some more to eat?"

Layla's attention was centered at the mention of feeding someone. "Of course, Luce. Take him to the kitchen and help him with whatever he likes."

"Thanks."

Lucy stood and gripped E.N.D by the material on his shoulder. She pulled at him much gentler than she'd have liked to, but with her mother's eyes on her, she have to at least pretend she could tolerate the guy. She led him into the kitchen and closed the door halfway.

"I don't know if this was a good idea," she said and leant against the bench top when they were alone. "I don't think she knows anything we could use."

"Where's the food?"

"What?"

"The food. You brought me in here for food."

Lucy rolled her eyes for what felt like the hundredth time that day and waved him over to the cupboard. He started rummaging.

"I didn't think a demon would eat."

He pulled out a box of dry pasta and turned it over in his hands, examining the label. "We don't usually. But when in Rome, you know? Besides, it kind of makes me nostalgical."

"Nostalgic?" she corrected.

E.N.D put the pasta back. "Whatever."

Lucy focused on a spot on the tiled floor. "What would be nostalgic about food for you?"

"Hmm? Never mind. Forget I said anything."

Lucy thought she might press him on that comment later, but now wasn't the time. "Alright, get your food and we'll go. We'll have to work something else out."

"Aww, come on, you're smarter than that." His tone was sarcastic, and Lucy silently hoped he'd accidentally slam his thumb in the cupboard door.

"Okay then. Since you're so smart and, 'nostalgical', what do you think we should do?"

"Well, in my experience," he began, "I'm pretty sure witches usually travel in packs. So my best guess is that those friends Anna had over were witches, too. Start there, big brains."

Lucy scowled, unwilling to let him have this over her. She pushed off the bench and made for the door. "Yeah, that's what I was about to say."

He turned his back to her and continued his cupboard exploration. "Whatever you say, Luce."

She was on her way back to her mother when the name had her turning on her heels and raising a finger at him. "Only my mother calls me that."

"Sure thing, Luce."

"Shut up," she scolded. "...Endy."

"Endy?" he asked through a laugh. "What's even that?"

Lucy scrambled to come up with some kind of name for him. Endina? No, that sounded stupid. Not humiliating enough. Endo? No. It was frustrating, how could she make a name out of something that wasn't even a name to begin with. She started hurling names at him until he held up a hand as if to beg for mercy. He was laughing so hard tears threatened to leak out of his eyes.

"Luce, Luce, Luce! Please, E.N.D isn't even my real name. Butcher it however you like, you just look stupid. Well, more stupid than usual."

Lucy grit her teeth so hard he could see the muscle in her jaw twitch. "Well, what's your real name."

He started laughing again. "As if I'd tell you that? If you knew my real name, you'd be able to summon me whenever you liked. You wouldn't even have to go through all that trouble to make your soup."

"Oh trust me, I never want to see you again after this."

E.N.D stopped laughing and tried to feign a serious face but the way his lips pressed together told her that another laughing fit was waiting to be let free. "Aw, don't be like that, Luce."

"Stop! You and I aren't on friendly enough terms for you to start giving me cutesy names!"

He collected himself enough to pull a box of cookies out of the cupboard and this time he didn't bother to meet her eyes when he said, "Isn't that what you humans do? You give cute names to your pets, right? You told me to try to fit in."

And then he took long, slow strides right past a furious Lucy as he went to sit with her mother again. Lucy told herself to take deep breaths before she followed him. She decided to just get straight to the point and be more direct with the interrogation. The faster she could get rid of E.N.D, the faster she could pull her life back together.

E.N.D had only just sat down in the same place he was earlier when she took a seat next to her mother. Part of her reasoning was because she wanted to have a more serious chat with Layla, the other part was because she wanted to put as much space between herself and the demon as possible. The sound of his lips smacking together as he annihilated the cookies made her skin crawl. Layla seemed to enjoy it, though. She smiled at him, her eyes glossing over. Seeing people enjoy food made her happy. It must have been a mother's thing.

Lucy straightened herself. "Mom, you wouldn't happen to still speak to any of grandma's friends, would you?"

Layla turned her brown eyes back to her daughter. "Not in years, darling. Why do you ask?"

Lucy faltered. It was getting harder to play her questions off as casual conversation. "I uh. Well, since you said that Grandma must have had a cooking group going on, I think I want to try to learn some tricks from someone who might have actually seen her… cook?"

"Luce, that's a little bit of effort for some recipes, isn't it? I'm sure you could make do if you just practiced."

Ever resourceful, Lucy looked to the mess of pink hair sitting across from her. She hadn't missed the way Layla kept eyeing him. If all of the years Layla had spent nagging Lucy to find a 'nice man' were ever to pay off, now was the time. Lucy leant in close and cupped her hand over her mother's ear when she said, "Mom, please. I kind of want to impress someone."

She almost gagged at the sentence. E.N.D's superhuman hearing became the bane of his existence and he coughed, almost slipping off his seat. Layla blushed.

"Oh. OH! Of course! I actually do happen to know an old friend of your grandmother's. I'll give you her address if you'd like? I haven't seen the woman in years though, love. So just be aware that she might not still be with us, if you know what I mean."

Layla stood to go to the top drawer of an old pine hall table and retrieved a pen and pencil. She scribbled down an address, her handwriting a shadow of the elegant cursive Lucy remembered from her childhood. "Here, Luce," she said and handed the paper to her. "The woman's name is April. She lives on Lavender street. If you go there and she does happen to still be in the land of the living, tell her Layla says hi."

"Thanks, mom."

The older woman came to sit once more, smiling at her daughter with so much adoration that the skin around her eyes crinkled. Layla may have lived through her prime years, but time was on her side and wasn't about to give away any secrets. Lucy could count her wrinkles on her fingers. It made Lucy happy to see that they were mostly clustered around her mouth, proof of all the smiles she'd given and the laughs she'd sung. "Lucy sweetheart, why do I feel like you're hiding something?"

Now it was Lucy's turn to cough. "Hiding something? I'm not hiding anything."

Layla just hummed. Lucy hated to lie to her mother. She never did it, to be honest. But this was different. She still didn't know what E.N.D was capable of, and just because he'd said his brother was on good terms with Anna didn't exactly mean he owed the same gratitude to her daughter. She lied to keep her mother safe.

After a long pause, Layla said, "I'm trusting you." Lucy felt her heart skip a beat.

"Okay," was all she could reply.

Layla's mood seemed to shift when she'd seen that E.N.D had finished his cookies. She asked him if he wanted anything else and he was about to explain that he very much would like more sweets if she had any, but Lucy interrupted. "We've got to go now, mom. I'll be around again soon!"

Layla made them wait while she went to the kitchen and came back with a donut. E.N.D took it. "I loved having you as always, Luce. And please, bring your friend around more often. Brad, was it?"

E.N.D nodded and shook her hand. Lucy couldn't help but notice the very human action. She wondered if there was some kind of demon school that taught creatures of the underworld how to converse with mortals.

"You kind of remind me of someone, you know?"

E.N.D just tipped his head to the side, more interested in his sugar glazed treat. "Really?"

"Yes, darling. It's your eyes. I haven't seen anyone with eyes that black since I was a little girl." She stared at him for a while before she continued. "A friend of my mothers, actually. He'd come around every now and then, and she'd make a big fuss of kicking me out of the kitchen before he arrived. Funny, I never saw him use the front door."

Lucy's ears perked up at that. E.N.D noticed the change in her posture and brought himself out of his private affair with his donut to reconnect. "What?"

"Yes," Layla nodded. "Odd fellow he was. I'd only spoken to him once, but I used to peek in the kitchen when I heard his voice. I don't think your grandmother ever knew that. They'd just talk for a while, sometimes she'd give him something. An object. Sometimes she wouldn't."

"What was strange about him. Mom?"

She turned her head now, gazing into her backyard but not really focusing on anything. She was floating through a memory. "The way he smelled, Lucy darling. You know when you light a match? He smelled like that. Like sulphur."

E.N.D was so intrigued, he had all but forgotten about his food. He let it dangle from his fingers at his side. "You said you spoke with him. What did he say?"

Layla snapped her eyes back to the pair sitting across from her. It was a movement so sudden, they both bounced back in their chairs to sit upright. She pushed her glasses up the bridge of her nose. "I only spoke with him once, but I remember it like it was yesterday. Funny how a stranger can have that much of an impact on you. I remember your grandmother told him to leave me alone, but he didn't. I didn't know why, either. He was nice enough. He told me his name was Zeref."

Lucy noticed the way E.N.D's expression dropped. Layla continued. "And he told me he had a little brother who might enjoy my company when I grew older." She shrugged. "It was the norm at the time, you see. To kind of pick marriages out for your younger family members. I remember your grandmother wasn't too happy about that. So much, that she started crying."

Now Lucy might not have been top of her class in school. She couldn't do much math without a calculator, and she'd never gotten around to memorizing the periodic table. She couldn't really tell you exactly where Russia was on a map without looking closely. But she could definitely see where this was going. Apparently so could E.N.D he stood and tried to blurt out his goodbyes, but Lucy was faster.

"Mom, did he tell you what his brother's name was?"

Layla smiled. "Natsu. He said his name was Natsu."

I just want to say that even though I'm Australian, I've used the word, "Mom," instead of, "Mum," because sometimes when I'm reading a story and I see, "Mum," it kind of pulls me out of the story? It's weird.

I'd also like to clarify that I realize that paganism and witchcraft are actually cultures/religions/spiritualties. This story in no way reflects the reality of pagan spiritualties, and it's all written for entertainment. The last thing I'd want to do is offend anyone, so please just know that I'm fully aware of this and I'm writing this for entertainment purposes, obviously. I thoroughly respect all kinds of cultures.

Also, big thanks to everyone who reviewed. I really, REALLY appreciate it so much more than you'll ever know. Thank you all!