I'm really happy to see that a lot of people are enjoying this remake. I apologize for the long wait, my job has been going crazy again. But I do hope you enjoy the second chapter. I'm actually loving it going deeper into the past, when they were just kids and writing a young and timid Kera.

And I hope everyone is staying safe and healthy!

"Here." Kera glanced down at the bowl that was being handed to her. It held a strange boiling liquid with several pieces of things she didn't recognize. What was this and why was he giving it to her? Was it supposed to be… food? Looking back at the pink haired boy, she gave him a questioning look.

Natsu, cocked his head slightly. "You don't want food?"

Ah, so it was food. But what were those strange pieces? Even though he told him it was food for her, she wasn't sure she should eat it. It seemed the boy noticed her hesitancy. She expected him to yell at her, but surprising her, the boy sat on the bed she was lying in. She shrunk back slightly but it seemed he didn't notice.

Natsu looked down at the bowl trying to figure out what was wrong. He gave the girl a short glance before his eyes went wide. "Oh! Is it because you can't eat it on your own due to your arm?"

Kera looked down at her arm that was in a cast and sling. The old woman told her that she wasn't supposed to move it around and let it rest. But… that wasn't the reason why she hesitated. She was scared that he was going to hurt her, like everyone else did.

"Hey, what's wrong?"

"Please leave…"

Natsu looked confused. "Why do you want me to leave? I can help! I can…" He stopped as the door to the infirmary opened up. Gray stood at the door with his hands in his pocket. "Hey! You seen Scarlet anywhere?"

The pink haired boy frowned. "Why would I know?"

"I just asked a question."

"Beat it stripper." Natsu was about to try and help Kera again, but he felt a snowball hit the back of his head. Kera flinched slightly and pulled the blanket closer to her. Natsu gritted his teeth as he turned around and jumped off the bed. "What the hell Gray!?" As an answer, he received yet another snowball to the face.

Gray smirked at him. "If you don't want a snowball in the face then answer my question."

"I told you! I don't know where she is! If you haven't noticed, she hasn't been talking to anyone here in this guild!"

"Just like your friend over there?"

Natsu growled. "Don't talk to her like that!" He shouted before tackling him to the ground. The two boys tumbled through the door and back into the main hall, leaving Kera alone in bed. The brunette pulled the blankets up to her chest, afraid that they might come back and hurt her as well. Were they fighting because of her? She didn't mean to cause trouble! Oh no… she was going to get punished for this… she knew this was a bad idea.

Her gaze went down to the ground to the small pile of snow that was slowly melting away. That boy knew magic… did… did they all know magic? Even at her age? Then… then why would they want her to join this guild? She didn't know any magic. She was just a pathetic, scared, little girl who couldn't do anything but screw everything up.

So why?

Why would they want her?

Nobody else wanted her…

That's… that's what they told her anyway…

Feeling her anxiety overwhelming her, the girl turned around and laid back down on the bed while pulling the sheets up to her shoulder. Closing her eyes again, she tried to escape into her own safe mind, dreaming of a better life. A life where she wasn't useless, where she wasn't a burden to everyone.

Beside her bed, the bowl of stew still lay on the table, left alone and forgotten by the young girl in bed. It would stay there all day getting cold until someone came into the room and grabbed it and laying another fresh one for the girl, hoping she would eat.

Makarov smiled as he entered the infirmary room. He saw the brunette still lying in bed, covered by the sheets. It has been a few days since the girl arrived to the guild. She was very shy and hardly talked to anyone. He knew Natsu was trying his best to make sure the girl was alright. He was grateful for the boy, knowing that at least someone was giving their best to make the girl feel welcome.

But of course he knew it wasn't going to be easy. The girl was suffering from whatever had been done to her. He was no fool, he could clearly see what kind of people did this to her. He just hoped they could help her recover. It would take time and a lot of patience, but he wasn't going to give up on her. He was going to do his best to help her.

He noticed the bowl of stew on the table beside the bed. He raised an eyebrow as the stew was still steaming, indicating it was fresh and hot. From what he had heard from the other members was that she barely ate, most of the stew sitting on the table until it was cold. So who was bringing her fresh hot stew for the girl? Was it Natsu? He might need to ask the boy. It couldn't be Gray and it definitely wasn't Mira. Maybe Cana? He shook his head, that wasn't something he had to worry about right now. He could just ask the bartender later anyway.

He cleared his throat, causing the girl in the bed to stir. She turned her head and noticed Makarov beside her. She flinched slightly and quickly got up on the bed. Unfortunately in her haste to move, she forgot about her injuries and hissed out in pain slightly. "There's no need to rush child, I just wanted to inform you that we're going to visit Porlyusica today so she can give you a check up."

"Porlyusica?" Kera asked confused. She didn't say much but Makarov was glad that she trusted him enough to speak with him.

The old man nodded. "The woman that treated you when you came here. We will have to go to her place though. I hope you don't mind a small walk."

The girl shook her head while holding her broken arm close to her chest. It was still resting in its sling, as she often fiddled with the strings.

Makarov glanced over at the stew. "Would you like to eat before we leave?"

Kera flinched. "I-I'm fine. I don't need food."

The old man raised an eyebrow at her. "When was the last time you ate?"

The girl shrunk in herself. She was scared that Makarov was going to be mad at her. "I… I don't know."

Makarov sighed as he took a step towards her and sat down on the bed beside her. "Listen Kera, you don't have to feel scared. This food is for you and only you. No one is going to be mad at you, alright?"

"I-It's for… me?"

"Just for you." Makarov smiled. "And you can have as much as you want. All you have to do is ask and we'll get you some."

The girl's eyes went wide when she heard this. First of all, this food was just for her? And she could have as much as she wants? They won't punish her for it? She hesitantly reached for the bowl while watching Makarov to make sure he was true to his word. With the bowl now settled into her lap she grabbed the spoon and took a bite.

Her eyes went wide at the taste of the stew. Was this how food was supposed to taste like? So many different flavors and it was warm! Without thinking, she started gobbling down the stew as fast as she could. Makarov chuckled softly seeing the girl eating the stew. "Slow down, your stomach might get upset if you eat too fast."

Kera stopped and lowered her head. "S-Sorry."

"There's no need to apologize Kera. Nothing you did was wrong. Now take your time and we'll leave when you are ready." Makarov explained as he got down from the bed. Kera watched him leave the infirmary room leaving her alone with the bowl of stew. Glancing down at it, she smiled softly. She grabbed another spoonful and enjoyed the taste.

"Are you ready?" Makarov asked as he saw Kera standing at the infirmary door. The girl simply nodded her head, trying to hide from the many gazes she was getting from the other members.

Makarov smiled and turned around. "Erza! It's time!"

From the back another girl walked up to them. It was a girl about Kera's age again. She had long red hair that reached past her shoulder. She wore a white blouse with a simple blue skirt, but what was most notable was the eye patch that was covering her right eye.

Makarov motioned towards the red head. "Kera, this is Erza, she will be joining you today. She needs to visit Porlyusica as well. Erza, this is Kera, she also joined Fairy Tail recently." Erza nodded towards her but the brunette simply looked away, too shy to say anything.

The Master simply smiled and motioned for the two of them to follow him. "Alright girls, let's go. She hates it when we're late…" he shuddered slightly, memories coming back to him from the past.

As the small group walked through a forest, they reached a small hut. During the walk, neither of the girls spoke a word, Kera mostly because she was scared. Porlyusica was standing at the front of her house, eyeing the newcomers without saying a word.

Makarov pushed Erza towards the old woman, while giving her a sweet smile as well. "This is Erza, she recently joined the guild and I was wondering if there was something you can do for her eye."

Kera stood to the side as the two spoke. Porlyusica leaned down towards the young girl. "May I?" She asked motioning towards the eye patch. Sighing, Erza took it off before looking up again. Kera froze as she saw what laid behind the patch. From her dark and cold past she has seen several people with severe injuries, but this… even though she didn't know this girl she felt sympathy.

Porlyusica hummed as she examined Erza's eyes. "I didn't realize her eye was so badly injured. It will be near impossible to completely restore her sight again."

Makarov let out a huff. "Come now, don't be so negative. I know you can do it. It's just a shame that she has to wear that ugly eye patch when she has such a pretty little face."

Porlyusica shot the old man a glare. "Makarov…" She grabbed him by the ear and pulled him up to her level. He yelled out in pain, but the woman ignored him. Instead she got right into his face. "You're not planning to make a move on her when she gets older."

The man chuckled as he played with his fingers. "Not little old me."

Kera glanced over at the red head and saw her gaze was set to the ground an expression on her face that Kera knew too well. It was a deep sorrow, one would hold after losing something, or someone. She didn't speak either, simply holding her gaze towards the ground.

Porlyusica sighed as she held her chin. "I'll see what I can do." Her gaze turned towards Kera and the woman seemed to relax slightly. "Good, you're here as well. Then let's get to work."

As the two girls entered the house, Porlyusica motioned for the two to sit down on the bed. First, the woman grabbed a book from her shelf and quickly flipped through it. Several notes of herbs and medicines littered the pages. She stopped at a certain page, setting it down on her desk and started grabbing herbs that were strewn across the room. Throwing them together and adding a bit of magic she turned towards Erza and started wrapping her eye with the medical compound she had created.

"We're going to keep this on for a while. In the meantime I will check on Kera." Porlyusica grabbed the rest of the medication before glancing over at the brunette who was sitting beside them quietly. The older woman slightly grabbed the girl's arm, removing it from the sling. "Have you been feeling any pain?" She asked while examining her arm.

Kera shook her head. Resting her arm as she was told, she wasn't feeling any pain than she was used to. Porlyusica nodded, slightly pleased about the results. She carefully pulled up the girl's shirt to inspect the gash on her stomach. "It's healing, but there will probably be a scar. I have some herbs for an ointment, but…" She sighed while giving Erza a slight glance. Kera understood, she needed it for the other girl.

Shaking her head, the girl pulled down her shirt to cover her stomach again. "No… she needs it more…" She whispered hoping only Porlyusica would hear. Yet the red head beside her still heard her and she was a bit speechless. The older woman was a bit surprised as well. She hadn't expected her to say something like that. Nodding her head, Porlyusica gave her a soft smile. "Very well, as for your arm, it will heal but it needs time. Keep resting it like you have been and everything should be fine. But don't hesitate to come back when you feel more pain or there is something wrong."

Kera nodded her head slowly while holding her arm again that was back in its sling. Meanwhile, Porlyusica went back to Erza and started to unwrap the bandages. She grabbed the girls chin, examining her face herself before handing a small hand mirror to her. The red head glanced into the reflection to expect her usual injured eye, but she was shocked to see it completely healed, no sign of scars or wounds. "I-It's healed." She whispered still shocked about the result.

Porlyusica nodded. "Can you see with it?"

Erza simply nodded her head still looking at her reflection. "Y-Yes miss." Her hand went over the eye to really make sure that it was real and not some illusion or dream. Kera was surprised herself to see that Porlyusica was able to heal such an injury. There was no sign or trace of the old injury anywhere.

Turning around, Porlyusica started to clean up her desk. "Good, now the two of you can leave."

Kera jumped off of the bed, holding her arm. She turned around to see if the other girl was coming as well, but what she saw made her go rigid. Should she say something? Or would that be inappropriate? Would she get punished for speaking out of turn? The girl would probably hate her.

Yet she still called for Porlyusica. "Um… miss?"

"What is it?" She asked a bit annoyed, but as she turned around, she understood why the girl had spoken up. Erza was sitting on the bed, with tears coming out of her left eye, but not out of her right, the artificial one. Porlyusica gaped slightly. "But how? This can't be." She quickly reached for her book, flipping through the pages to search for an answer. "I don't understand, the compounds were correct, there shouldn't have been a mistake!"

"It's alright." Erza answered causing both Kera and Porlyusica to look over at her. She smiled as she wiped the tears from her right eye. "It's probably because I already shed so many tears, that there aren't any left."

Kera was speechless. How could she be so strong? How could she still stay positive? The girl lowered her head, this was just another fact that she was just so weak. She could never be so strong. She was merely a pathetic little girl that wasn't capable of anything.

She was useless…

Makarov sighed as he came back to the guild from Porlyusica. It had been a crazy long day, but he was glad that the old woman was able to help those two girls. Using her special healing talents she was even able to heal Erza's eye.

But what made him most curious was how she acted around the little brunette. Usually she was harsh to anyone, no matter if they were a child or an adult. Yet with Kera… the woman was calmer and more caring. She didn't snap at her or scared her. Was it because she was so shy? He didn't know the answer but it was quite curious.

His eyes saw a woman handing out drinks to their members. This was Triss, their bartender who would always make sure that you were taken care of. She had just given Macao his beer before heading towards the bar. "Triss, can I ask you something?" He asked as he sat down by the bar.

"Of course Master." The woman smiled as she grabbed a glass and started cleaning it.

Makarov smiled. "I was just wondering if you have been bringing food to the infirmary for Kera. It seems there's always a bowl of stew there just in case she decides she wanted to eat."

Triss blinked, confused at first, but then smiled. "Oh, I wish I was responsible for that, the poor girl looks like she suffered through a lot. I asked that young red headed girl, if she could bring a bowl to her once. Yet it seems that she has been doing it for a while now on her own."

"Erza?" Makarov was surprised to hear that. He might have expected Natsu to be responsible for the food but Erza? He smiled softly at this new revelation. "Well that's interesting." He hadn't seen this coming at all. Erza had been quiet herself, not interacting with any of the members, so hearing that she was actually bringing food to Kera was news to him.

Maybe, just maybe those two could actually help each other. It was a long shot, but it could help them both in opening up more. Two damaged souls finding their way to each other.

He just hoped both girls could find their true place. And he hoped that they could get past whatever has been done to them.