Natsu was wandering aimlessly through a forest. He remembered everything that happened up until this point. He remembered how he wanted to stop Zeref but failed. He chased Zeref into the past after he opened the time portal but ultimately, he couldn't stop him. That moment he was struck with panic and instinct. Not rationally able to control himself he made one desperate dash towards his now near-godly enemy, Zeref.

After his defeat, the time portal went crazy and transported Natsu in a different time and disappeared for good. It was the around the time when Igneel disappeared in his own timeline. Maybe a few years before, he couldn't tell at this point. A lot of things felt different and things he didn't remember he experienced so far, felt oddly familiar.

Natsu had already tried everything he could to get back to his original timeline but neither Zeref time portal nor the gate to Eclipse was present in this timeline. On his journey to research even the slightest clue to time magic, every step he made was yet another failure and the Natsu that never gave up started to feel like there is no hope of ever reversing the ultimate shift in this timeline. Being the only one to even remember a different past and future, the help he could get was very limited after all

'Now I know how Lisanna must've felt when she got stuck in Edolas' was the only thing he could come up with to describe his current situation. He was in the past now but everything was different. Fairy Tail didn't exist in this version of history. The first thing he did after Natsu got trapped here was trying to find Fairy Tail in Magnolia but it wasn't there. The was a big cake shop where his guild hall used to be.

'Erza would love this absurdly big cake shop. She would enjoy a delicious strawberry cake after she beat the shit out of me for trying to sacrifice myself in the final fight'. Natsu made a sad nostalgic smile as he recalled all the moments he had with a certain redhead in his timeline. Remembering Erza was probably the hardest part of being trapped here. The fact that she probably didn't even know him anymore broke his heart every time he thought about it. Those moments may have been erased from history, but not from his mind. Those were still memories that he valued most, memories that made Natsu who he is right now. Strange how the same memories in a whole different situation can mature one person like that.

Natsu snapped out of his thoughts when he realized that there was a small village not too far away. He decided to rest a while in that village. His hunger had been bothering him for a while on his long journey. Not getting much rest he traveled around the continent to search for any clue, any knowledge that could help him.

Once he entered the village he could see many kids playing on the streets, smiling like there was nothing wrong with this world. Not every kid had time to play though. Some of them had to help with the work of the adults. This place seemed to mostly engage in agriculture so there were lots of farms and fields around here so some kids needed to help their parents with their work.

As Natsu inspected the village something bumped into him.

"Ah, I am terribly sorry mister"

A small girl with red hair and brown eyes apologized to Natsu as she tried to put everything back into her two baskets again.

"No problem. Are you alright?"

Natsu asked and helped the girl collect the baskets she dropped from the floor. Upon picking them up Natsu realized, those were heavier than he expected to be honest.

"I am fine, thank you for your help"

The girl said sincerely.

After she collected everything she was about to carry on again. She seemed to have a hard time with those gigantic baskets of hers. She looked like an earnest and hardworking little girl, which made Natsu smile.

"Ah, let me help you"

Natsu suggested and immediately grabbed most the stuff the girl was carrying without asking first. Even now he was still straightforward. An attitude Natsu couldn't grow past.

"Ah no, it's alright really, you don't have to-"

"It's fine~. If you wanna make up for it then tell me something about this village as we carry this to where it needs to be"

The girl thought about it for a second but she didn't feel any bad intent from Natsu so she agreed. He may be a stranger but her heart told her she could trust this man.

"Is there an inn or anywhere I can rest around here?"

Natsu asked while effortlessly carrying everything and following the girl.

"Rosemary Village is a rather small village as you can see and does rarely have visitors from outside. However, the pub has one or two guest rooms you can rent if needed"

Rosemary Village? That name sounded familiar. He looked over at the girl once again. Her scarlet red hair… 'No, that's impossible' Natsu thought and cleared his mind. It was probably a village he heard on a mission or something. Naturally, he wasn't very good at remembering every little village he heard about in the missions he got.

"I see… Do you live with your parents? Why do you carry this stuff all on your own?"

"I am an orphan"

"Oh, I'm sorry. I shouldn't have asked"

Natsu regretted his indelicate question. He was always bad at reading the mood.

"Don't worry about it. I have never met my parents so I don't really care that much. I have a good life here as it is"

The small girl smiled softly. A smile that, for an unknown reason, made Natsu's heart skip a beat. It was an honest and charming smile. Natsu didn't know why he blushed there but the girl didn't seem to realize so it should be fine.

"By the way, what happened to your arm, mister?"

The girl asked while curiously looking at Natsu's bandaged arm. Natsu bandaged the arm to hide his beloved Fairy Tail insignia. He felt conflicted to show it off like that when Fairy Tail did not seem to exist in this new world. So he decided to hide it. Experience showed that having a commonly unknown symbol on your arm made people stand out, especially if it was from a guild that nobody ever heard of. Well, that's because the guild never existed in this reality after all.

"Oh, that? Just a minor injury from a fight I had recently. No big deal"

Natsu didn't want to tell her about Fairy Tail yet but for some reason, he didn't want to lie to that girl either, so he decided to tell half of the truth. He did still have a few injuries from his fight with Zeref but those were mostly healed by now.

"A fight? Are you a mage by any chance?"

Accidentally asking with a higher pitched voice, the girl's eyes sparkled with excitement. The life around here is rather uneventful and there were no mages in this village either so she was very curious about mages and magic in general.

"Hell yeah! I am one of the strongest mages ever."

Natsu bragged as he slight put his body on fire to demonstrate his mage.

The girl looked at Natsu with pure fascination and excitement. He seemed to be on fire but it didn't bother him one bit. So that was magic? It defied common sense and allowed people to do great things that would normally be impossible. She was completely captivated by Natsu's majestic flames. They didn't just seem to heat the air around her but there was something else too. It felt like a familiar warmth inside of her body. She didn't know where that came from but she loved the warm mantle that formed around her heart. Magic was truly fascinating. Could every mage do something that amazing?

"Y-You are on fire?!"

"Hehe~ Pretty awesome, isn't it?"

"It is! Are you a member of a magic guild? I read that most mages are a member of a guild."

The girl was curious. She wanted to learn more about this beautiful thing called magic. Her pure sparkling eyes left Natsu defenseless. He just couldn't keep a secret from that girl. And strangely, he felt a little scared hiding something from this particular girl. A minor alarm went off in his head that was conditioned to not try to lie. Weird, that feeling only erupted in front of very specific people.

"Yes, I am-… I was actually. The guild was called Fairy Tail and it was the strongest guild in Fiore"

Natsu said braggingly but there was a hint of sadness in Natsu's voice.

"That sounds beautiful but what happened to the guild? Did you leave it?"

Natsu made a melancholic smile. His memories of this beautiful guild in his timeline started to flash up again. The girl quickly caught on to Natsu's different attitude.

"Ah, I am sorry. It seems like this is not a pleasant memory."

Natsu was surprised by the maturity of said girl. She still was a child, of course, but there Natsu could see that there was distinct kindness in her heart. Something most adults didn't even have.

"No, it's fine. The guild was closed a long time ago but I still feel connected to it somehow. Like there is still a bond to my old teammates that transcends time itself."

Natsu felt like he brabbled nonsense but he felt like he could be honest with this little girl.

"I think I know what you mean. For some reason, I have a feeling too that there is something missing. Like something has changed but I couldn't think of what it is."

Did she feel some side effects from the change of history? Was this girl supposed to be somewhere else in Natsu's time and her mind is confused by these magical changes? If that's the case then this girl must have a very strong magical affinity. 'She will be a powerful mage in the future' Natsu confirmed in his thoughts.

"We've arrived."

The girl and Natsu entered a small house. Apparently, this was where these baskets were supposed to be brought to.

An old man greeted them. He did not recognize Natsu and that seemed to confuse him. The girl realized that and spoke up.

"Hello, Ojii-san. I encountered this traveler on my way here and he kindly offered me his help."

The old man laughed delighted.

"Ohoho, it's rare for strangers to enter this village. It must be fate that brought you here, young man. Thank you very much for your help"

Natsu was a bit embarrassed by the easygoing attitude of that old geezer. He smiled awkwardly and scratched the back of his head.

"It's nothing really. You can be proud that you have such a kind girl to help you out."

"Ohoho, indeed. Erza is very mature for her age. She helps me around whenever I need help. She is such a lovely child. I wish Kagura and Simon were that mature"

The girl blushed in embarrassment

"O-Ojii-san!"

Natsu, on the other hand, turned pale. Erza? Did he say Erza? He looked at the girl once again. Her scarlet red hair, her gentle smile, and those stunning brown eyes. Of course, the resemblance was mind-blowing. How could he not have noticed before?

He looked at the small Erza and a single tear escaped his eyes. He found her. He found the person he loved so much in his previous life. She was small right now but it was still the Erza he knew back then. Many things may have changed compared to his own history, but certain aspects of reality cannot easily be changed it seems.

Erza noticed that Natsu was crying. The sudden tear flowing down the stranger's cheek caught her by surprise. Just in a matter of split seconds, all of her emotions were in turmoil. Somehow she didn't want to see him cry. She didn't know the reason for it, it was highly irrational. They barely met but she could feel invisible sparks of kindness and trust surrounding that person from the very beginning.

"W-What's wrong? Are you alright?"

Erza asked worriedly.

Natsu wiped away his tears and put on the most genuine smiles he ever had and said "Everything's fine"

"I will take my leave now."

Natsu said and made his way to the exit. Not trying to look back once because if he did... there would be no way to know if the emotions will get the better of him. Leaving the building, strictly following the main road. Suppressing each and every cell of his body that urged him to stay here... by her side. But it was not meant to be anymore, he knew that much. Reality changed too much for that. This was the punishment for his loss. A reality without the one family, and the one person, he held dearest in his heart. Arriving here must have been destiny's cruelest joke on him. Each step felt heavier. Just like the first few he took in this world, not ready to accept a time without his family. Natsu wanted to stay here, build a relationship with one of the most important parts of his past... or rather his future. But he knew he mustn't. Cutting past ties and moving on without leaving much more of a trail to change history any more than it already had thanks to that cursed brother of his. Just as he wanted to leave the village behind…

"Wait!"

Erza ran up to Natsu. She didn't want him to leave yet. She wanted to hear his story, show him his magic, and stay around for much longer.

"D-Didn't you want to stay for a while. I can organize you a room if that's the problem."

Erza desperately tried to make him stay.

"No need. I have already found what I was looking for"

Natsu said with a soft smile

"I want to hear your stories how you fight monsters with your magic and see how you can make fire with your bare hands"

"There is no need for that"

"But why?!"

Erza was getting desolate. She did want to hear about his amazing adventures. For some reason, she felt like she needed to hear his story, like she had her own part in them. It was as if they were bound by fate.

"You will find your own magic once."

"R-really?"

Could this be possible? Does she really have magic? If so, why didn't it manifest until now? Those were the questions that immediately popped up in her head. She didn't know much about magic. Only the bits she learned in the few books that depicted the abilities of mages here and there but Erza imagined that magic manifest itself in a person at a very young age.

"I am certain of it. You will become one of the most powerful (and scary) mages out there and you will experience lots of adventure in the future."

"…"

Those predictions sounded astonishing. Too good to be true, in fact. But it felt like she didn't want to be alone in them. Someone was missing in all of those fights and adventures. Someone she could trust to the fullest.

This time Natsu finally decided to turn around. Just to ask a question, one simple question before he left.

"Your last name. May I ask what it is?"

"M-my last name?"

Getting caught out of guard by him stopping and turning to her again, after those few seconds that felt like an eternity. Erza's face turned wistful like she didn't know what to answer this question that felt like a very important one. After a brief pause, she continued.

"It's just Erza... I don't have any surname."

"I see, so that's how it was then"

Natsu made a pensive and melancholic smile after recalling how the Erza he knew was in a similar situation before. Alright. He thought about how he felt for the Erza in his timeline, the Erza he adored so much. The Erza he once just wanted to surpass but grew to be someone way more precious to him than anyone else he ever encountered. The one goal in his mind, not only in strength but at some point a feeling that had transcended beyond anything he knew before. Natsu recalled the one outstanding feature the small Erza in front of him and the mature Erza he knew had in common. A color that started to appear in his dreams and the color he grew to like the most.

"Scarlet. Erza Scarlet. It matches your beautiful red hair. It's a nice name, don't ya think?"

"Scarlet?..." Erza repeated in awe. This one single name hit her hard and she took a slight glimpse of the scarlet red hair of hers that she thought nothing special of until now.

However, Natsu did not wait to see her reaction. He was not ready to increase this emotional pressure that already made him hate leaving now. As much as he wanted to stay by her side, sharing his story, his life, with Erza once again, he left without looking back even once and Erza could only watch him leave. Not looking back, he could only imagine what her reaction was but it was a name he held very dear and this was the person he could share a tiny bit of.

'You will be happy Erza. No Zeref or cultists that could take away your smile in this world' Natsu confirmed himself. 'Maybe it's for the best that way. Maybe having this timeline where you don't have to suffer is good in itself'

Were Natsu's final thoughts as he left the village forever.