What's up everyone, Tati here. And welcome to the first chapter of the actual story. A lot of you like it, like really like it. So here's the next chapter. There's two parts to this story in total, but I'll keep the details about it as a surprise for you all. But some context before you continue.

Natsu's the oldest on the team, being 20. Erza and Gray are the same age, Erza's 19 and Gray's turning 19 soon. And Lucy's the youngest at 18.

Chapter I

I stared out of my window, waiting to be called down for breakfast. The early snowfall covered the fields around the village and the rooftops. But, the snow would make traveling to the market hard for the horses and for us. I saw a couple of white rabbits hopping their way through the cold air, probably to the forest where they will be safer…If they don't get caught by the Infected.

I stood up from my window seat and to my drawer. I opened one of them and pulled out a loose white dress that came with a black corset that rested under my chest, with matching black jacket with gold trimming was folded underneath the dress. My mother's. She would use it whenever it was snowy weather like this to distract Infected away from the others. My hands ran over the silky material. Even though it was a dress, it was easy to defend against Infected wearing it.

I started undressing out of my night clothes and into the dress when I heard a knock at the door. Natsu walked in, unfazed by me in my undergarments. I nodded casually to him as he sat on my bed.

"Mom finished making breakfast," he said. I nodded as I slipped into the dress. He wasn't freaking out as his brothers would. I mean, when I fell apart years ago he was the one who had to help me dress. Secretly, I think he didn't mind really.

I pulled her sleeves on and tied the front corset up. I attempted to tie the back one too. Well, I guess you could say Natsu had to drag himself from his spot on my bed to help me out.

"And, there you go," he said when he finished. I turned to him and nodded. "Maybe Gray could make you some weird contraption to help you out with the back." He laughed and I raised an eyebrow. "What?"

I shook my head. Never mind you idiot, I thought. I walked over to my mirror and started brushing my blonde hair, an obvious beacon for Infected. I glanced at Natsu in the mirror as he looked outside. Trying to look busy. His dark eyes switched from looking outside to me as he continuously scratched his head of pink hair, another beacon for Infected. We made perfect distractions together.

The light reflecting off the new fallen snow caused tinges of silver to appear in his hair. Natsu's tall, well toned body was covered with a pair of white pants, a black waist coat, and his one-sleeved black jacket. His muscles were broad from all of the heavy lifting he did at a young age. The girls should be thankful to God for giving him such a body to drool over. Because that's what we need; girls who are head-over-heels for boys in our armada instead of more female warriors.

I looked to myself in the mirror now. An average-sized maiden of eighteen-years old, with exception to my massive bust. With the slight waves of golden hair and deep brown eyes, I wonder why people haven't drooled over me yet. Perhaps it's because I bring in the village's food supply. I looked like my mother. The height, the heart-shaped face, small, pointy nose, and the fair skin. I'm the only one with these bright, almost god-like features after my mother died.

I stood up and grabbed my black jacket that was identical to Natsu's out of the drawer. I started walking out of my room as I slid on the jacket.

I heard Natsu scrambling to catch up to me. "Wait up Luce!" I smiled and shook my head as we walked down the stairs together in his family's cottage. Yes, I lived with him. It's not so bad…right?

I could hear Natsu's three brothers and younger sister fighting about something in the dining room about something. I flinched when I heard their mother yelling at them, or stepmother, and sighed when their father tried to intervene between the children and their mother. We walked in and saw the eldest brother, Gajeel, shoving a couple of flapjacks into his mouth and about to take another two from the older twin, Rogue. The younger twin, Sting, was grabbing the eldest sister, Wendy's, hair as the youngest in the family was about to drip their father's short ponytail into the pitcher of orange juice. Wild…

I grabbed the pitcher out of Wendy's reach, practically hearing her pout. Took Rogue's flapjacks from Gajeel and gave them back to him. And slapped Sting's hands to let go of his sister's blue hair. I grabbed an empty plate and slipped five flapjacks on to it. I grabbed the syrup and poured some on and pulled up a chair on the bar in front of the kitchen.

"And that's how you should handle it," Igneel said, Natsu's father. I heard Felicity, Natsu's stepmother, scoff. She never really liked me when I "joined" their family.

"Stop praising the Free-Loader," she muttered under her breath.

"Mom, stop calling Lucy that," Wendy said.

"Yeah Mom," Sting said. "Stop calling the hottie that."

I looked over my shoulder and gave Sting a death stare. Natsu walked over to him and put his younger brother into a headlock.

"You saw Luce," Natsu growled. "Don't court her, Ass."

"Then why don't you court her, Big Brother?" Sting choked out.

"Boys! I don't want anybody courting the Free-Loader!" Felicity yelled.

"But Mom!" the boys, minus Rogue and Gajeel, yelled.

"She'll just leave you like how her father did with her," Felicity said, fully knowing that hit a nerve. A bad one to add.

I slammed my fists on the counter. I turned around to glare at her. If looks could kill, she'd be bleeding to death on the floor once she looked into my eyes. Natsu walked over to me and rubbed my arm. He stared at his mother.

"That went too far Mother," he said. "You know what could've happened. He wouldn't dare abandon his only daughter."

I drowned my cup of orange juice that he put down beside my plate and shoved his hand off me. I walked out of the room and out of the cottage. Slamming the door in the process.

Stupid woman, I thought. Thinking she knows anything! Damn her to hell! I sighed, puffing up my cheeks. Damn…

"Having a rough morning, eh Lucy?" I heard a female's voice rang. I looked up and saw Erza, lying down on one of the rooftops. I smiled and nodded. "Tch. Felicity again I'm betting." I placed my finger on my nose: Right on the dot. "That's woman's a bitchy monster."

Erza slid down the roof and did a summersault in the air before landing a few feet to my right. Archers had to be agile to run around if they didn't have a good enough aim to shoot.

Erza was about my height, probably a little taller though. Her hair was scarlet red and dead straight which made it a hassle during hunting as it got in the way of her shooting and a pain when she's spotted. Her eyes were as brown as the forest ground. Her body was more toned than mine but not as much as Natsu's. Archers didn't really need to be that fit. Skinny's fine and as long as you're light on your feet.

"What happened this time?" Erza asked. I just looked at her as I didn't bring my notebook out with me. She looked up and down for it. "Oh…You don't have it."

"That Mother of mine went too far today," Natsu said. We looked in his direction. He waved to Erza with my little black book. "You forgot it on the counter."

I bowed in thanks to him and grabbed it. I took out the attached pen and opened the book. I started writing in it and showed it to them when I was finished.

Just the usual, trying to get Natsu's family to kick me out.

I got a laugh out of Erza and Natsu just shook it off and turned around towards the village square.

"Let's get ready for the trip Luce," he said. "Erza, could you grab our stuff? It's on the front porch."

Erza saluted to him. "Roger," she said. She pulled out a Communicator and started talking into it. "Gray! Get your butt to Natsu and Lucy's! We got stuff to carry!"

"On it."

"C'mon Luce," he said. I nodded and started following Natsu to the village square.

My eyes looked over my shoulder, watching Erza's receding back.

Natsu grabbed my arm and started pulling me along with him. "We're gonna be late and then the villagers are going to be mad." He passively slipped his hand into mine and held it his warm one.

My relationship with Natsu was a weird one. We were forced to be each other's hunting partners since we were six and trained together since then. But, we hated each other at first. He didn't make any kind of contact to me when we were outside of training or hunts. I didn't mind really. I liked being alone. Unless I'm with my parents. We'd always tried to catch my father's eye, the Head Gunman at the time. As if it was destined, my father praised me more than he did Natsu. The perks of being the next in line to be the Head Gunman.

That all changed when my mother left with the Citizens. My father became more distant from me. I did look my mother and I figured it hurt him to see me. At the time, though, I didn't understand what was happening. All I could understand with my brain of a child was that Mother was gone and Father was sad. Some, if not half, of the villagers were like that. Cold, distant from any contact from others, and…sad. And more are added every year around the Frost. In other words, winter.

With my father being less fatherly to me, the relationship between me and Natsu changed. We were in the same boat, his mother was taken away with my mother. But, unlike me, he couldn't dwell on his sadness. Before Igneel remarried, Natsu had to take care of his younger brothers Sting and Rogue and little sister Wendy, who was three at the time. Natsu had someone to be strong for, I didn't.

Natsu took pity on me. I think he still does. Even if it's been nearly ten years. Natsu talked to me, though I wouldn't respond back to him in friendly tones. Mother's disappearance didn't just take a toll on my father. It hit me hard too. But, Natsu took his time with me. I eventually let down my walls, letting him be my first friend. And now, he's one of my best friends.

But, when I was nine, my father suddenly disappeared. With no trace. I was a stone when I found out. I stood there as Natsu's father told me that my father was nowhere to be found in the village. I yelled after. Screamed. And threw some furniture around. Denying the fact with every ounce of my small being. Then, I ran.

I ran out of the village with no weapon. A death sentence. Packs of Infected surround the outskirts of the fields where the mouth of the forest was. They were "dead", but they weren't stupid; the Infected knew and understood that we hunted in that forest for survival. But I ran towards it with no form of protection. I fell over a dead body and started crying, crawled up in ball. I heard the screeches of the Infected closing in on me. I didn't try to run into the refuge of the forest.

What good would it do? I couldn't outrun them. And if I did, I probably wouldn't be left unwounded and end up turning into one of them in a matter of minutes. But, let's say I did make it to the forest unscathed. There were the animals that would love to have a vulnerable nine-year old for lunch.

I looked to the sky. I saw a faint image of my mother and father smiling together. Like how they did before they left me here. Alone. I let tears stream down my face before an Infected grabbed me and started biting on my right arm.

I didn't scream. I just didn't want to. I wanted to die then and there. With no parents left to care. With barely any friends that would actually care. But, I should've screamed. The Infected's teeth biting off my arm had excruciating pain that I can't describe. It was almost like the feeling of your skin being pulled off with unsteady hands and being burned off with melted iron. I lost my voice. I wouldn't live anymore, I wouldn't speak anymore.

I felt that I was on the brink of death. On the doorstep to wherever the next world leads me to. Until I heard gunshots fired in the air, swords clashing, and arrows shot through the air. I felt something cold on me, especially on my arm. The black blood of the Infected. I looked around and could barely make out the figure of a boy a couple years older than me with pink hair. Natsu. He seemed to be yelling at me about something but I couldn't hear because of the ringing in my head. So I shook my head. I raised my right arm to my throat and saw the damage Infected could have on unarmed Sectors. My arm was starting to look that of an Infected. Deteriorating flesh, turning a sickish colour. My crimson red blood slowly and painfully turning into Infected black blood.

"Luce," Natsu said to me. I bumped into something, probably Natsu. I shook my head and looked up to him. He stood in front of me in his young glory of being twenty. "You okay? You seem kinda dazed and nauseous." I smiled to him and waved my hand over my shoulder: I'm fine. We better keep going. He doubted me. I know it from his eyes eyeing my eyes then my arm. "Alright. Let's go." He pulled on

I silently sighed and looked down to my arm. The Healers tried their best to heal my arm before I completely turned Infected. Instead, they chopped it off and left me with a stump for a while. That was until a man and his daughter from the north had passed through our village.

The man had escaped from Cana, or Ever Refuge, for unknown reasons with his daughter and was going through the villages helping those who had lost their limbs to the Infected. He had replaced my missing limb with a metal arm, a luxury only found in Cana and something plenty of Citizens had when they visited our villages. It's a fashion statement up North while down here it's another chance at life.

And ever since that day, I don't talk. I stay silent. And ever since, I let people come within my walls more easily than before. If I didn't, I might end up in a worse position than before.

As we neared the village square, I could see the other Gunmen and Swordsmen helping the travelling villagers with loading the carts. Gray and Erza were already there with our stuff. I barely noticed that Natsu walked me through the long, scenic route instead of the faster, less beautified one. I could hear Erza making kissing sounds and I rolled my eyes as Natsu hid his face behind his hand. Gray nodded as if he was observing Infected in a pen.

"You're right Miss Erza," Gray said, "Mr. Natsu is more prone to embarrassment than Miss Lucy." I nodded my head to him and let go of Natsu's hand. My fingertips lingering on the back of his hand for a mere moment before grabbing my stuff. I thrust my metal arm in Gray's face. He was a Maintenance kid; it's his job to maintain our weapons. And my arm when I couldn't make it to my mechanic if he's out of town. "I'm on it. Sit down Miss Lucy."

I sat on the edge of the empty fountain in the middle of the square as Gray oiled my arm and tweaked it a little. I saw a little boy with two others with him playing around a puddle. Their mothers were probably bringing them for their first Market Day. I was always against children coming along. They get in the way when we're trying to mobilize. And are usually the first ones to die on the road as they fall behind the rest. I tried to pass a law that only children with a basic knowledge on fighting and of age nine should be allowed to travel outside of the village with a group for social functions. That didn't get passed. Felicity was against it; therefore the entire female population (well, minus some with an actual brain) was against it. It's a status quo thing. Listen to what the leader's wife says and you'll be on good terms in village life.

"There you go." Gray took a step back and admired his work like only an artist would. I guess, if you look at it in a different light, what he does is probably art up North. "I think you should get Gildarts or Cana to look at it when they're back, it's a little dent on the elbow. But other than that, we're good to go."

I moved my metal arm around and found that it didn't creak at all like this morning. I nodded to Gray gratefully and smiled. He raised his arm as if saying it was nothing.

"It was nothing Miss Lucy," he said with a slight hint of a cocky smile. Alright, unlike the other newbs, he deserved to have that cocky smile on his face.

I picked up my notebook quickly scribbling something in it before showing it to him.

You can drop the Miss Gray.

Gray's eyes widened before looking at me. "Are you sure? I mean you three are my superiors and all."

We're on the same team, just call everyone by their name.

"Ma'am!" someone called out. I looked up to a burly man with pale blonde hair and bright blue eyes. A man I call Hercules as he has saved many villages as a widely known Swordsman. His name, Shepherd.

I nodded towards him as the others greeted to him casually. I wrote in my little black book again.

Anything wrong Shepherd?

"We're leaving in about seven minutes but Antoine's family is having some trouble with their fidgety son and they won't be able to finish loading in time," Shepherd explained. I nodded for him to continue. "They were hoping you would help with both situations."

I nodded with a small smile and looked to Erza. She smirked. "Alright. Let's go Lucy." I waved to Natsu and Gray, letting them know that we'd be right back, as Shepherd led the way.

Antoine and his wife, Louisa, were loading their goods, grain and sown clothes, into their small cart. Their son, I think his name was Donny, was bugging the worn-out donkey. When I saw them, they were well off. Good warm clothes with no holes in them, more or less well fed, and high off compare to most of the other villages. When Louisa saw us, she grabbed her husband's arm and he looked up with a large smile spreading across his face.

"Shepherd, you didn't have to bring anyone to help," Antoine said. "Much less Lucy." I raised my hand and shook my head: It's no problem. We have to help anyone in need.

"It's not a problem Mr. Antoine," Erza said. "We're glad to help wherever we can."

"Dear," Louisa said, "any help is well appreciated Girls. Thank you." I smiled as I bent over to pick up a bundle of grain. "Donny!"

I looked up and saw young green eyes staring back at me. I raised the bundle up in my arms and looked at Donny properly. Probably about five. Damn, he'll be probably one of those kids who'll drive me and the rest of the armada insane. He did look fidgety; never did stop shifting from one foot to the other and back again. He played with dark black locks non-stop. Agitating me in the process. I wanted to grab that hair of his and cut it off until it was that of a military man's. I noticed one thing; he constantly switched his attention from my brown eyes to my metal arm.

His mother came over and whispered something in his ear as I went to place the bundle on the cart. "Honey, it is not polite to stare at people. Especially her Donny. She's our future leader."

"Why does she have a metal arm Mommy?" Donny asked in his childish tone.

"I can't answer that for you. You shouldn't be asking things like that at your age."

Yes, the innocence of children is a great reminder in the village. Things were peaceful until you leave the wall of safety and the protection from the armada. The things that children see behind their eyes is an illusion, a luxury of a timid life compared to the things their parents and adults have seen…Even me and my team of Natsu, Erza, and Gray.

Erza was looking at me in the corner of her eye and I nodded towards her. I let every kid that passes me by whenever they ask that question know that I'm the result of what happens when you let your guard down. Especially when they come along of trips outside of the village. She walked over to Donny and knelt next to him. Louisa looked at me and understood what I meant with this. She got up and left him there with Erza. I continued helping Antoine and Shepherd with packing.

"Mommy," Donny whined.

"Kid, she lost her arm when she left the village with no weapon and no supervision. It was a stupid move made on her part and on our part because no one went after her," Erza said. "Going on these trips may be your last and you have to pay attention whenever you're in Infected Territory. Get it? If you don't," she pointed directly to my metal arm with a tense arm, "you'll end up exactly like her."

I knew that Erza never liked telling everyone about my mistake as a child, much using me as an example. But it was something to let the kids face the reality of our world.

She got up and left Donny playing in the frosted covered grass. I honestly don't think that anything got through to him.

"Thank you for your help ladies," Antoine said when I placed the last bundle of clothes and grain on the cart. "We made it just in time." It was two minutes and forty-seven seconds till we left for the Market Village.

"Briefing time," Erza sighed out, throwing her head back. "I don't wanna go."

I chuckled and started pushing Erza towards the square where Natsu and his father were already in the centre, waiting for me.

I walked through the crowd, using Erza as a human shield. I heard her grumble something to me, but I smiled it off. I stood next to Igneel when I finally made it to them as he started the briefing.

"Alright, listen up! It's Market Day so we're going to the Market Village!" Arthur yelled. "There's twenty seven of us going. Ten men, twelve women, and five children. I don't want any deaths on this trip. I will not be going for this trip. It will be lead by my son Natsu and Lucy." I heard some murmurs among the crowd.

I knew most don't think an unstable mute girl should be leading the armada today. Especially that kids were on the trip this time, they know I won't be empathetic if they get caught by some Infected. But, none the less, the villagers didn't say anything. The villagers don't say anything though, in fear that they wouldn't get to go on the trip today.

"We'll be taking the usual route," Natsu said. "Please stay on the path, if you don't there will be a possibility that you will attract the attention of the Infected. And if we do get attacked we have Healers with us and two more than capable teams who will make sure nothing happens. Children, stick to your mothers or fathers. Parents…" Jared looked at me from the corner of his onyx eyes. "Pay attention to your kids."

"Let's head out!" Shepherd yelled.

The carts started rolling as the younger teenagers ran to jump on the back of a couple. The five kids, Donny, three other boys and a girl, ran around a couple of Swordsmen and Gunmen. But, completely avoiding me and my unit. Natsu's father pat his son's shoulder and pat my head. My team stayed at the back of the pack.

Erza was opening a heart-covered paper. "Damn it!" she yelled. I looked at her questionably. "It's this boy from the next village over. He wants to court me." I smiled. "No. No Lucy. Bad Lucy. I rather not think about that right now. Not until I'm twenty-five or something."

I nodded as we continued walking. The trip wasn't long. About a couple hours or so. But a lot could happen. The path had a chained fence leading to the Market Village. It was to keep the Infected from disrupting the trip. But it doesn't stop them from climbing over the fence. Anything could happen really. A wild boar attack, an Infected attack, a bear attack. The summary of it, a lot could happen. I've lost people on the road to the market before. Natsu had to watch his father fend off against some wolves by himself as we evacuated the area, nearly ending up with Igneel dead.

It's hard to see people you care about in any battle where life and death hang in a fragile balance. It's a struggle to survive even if we were in a large group. And it only gets harder when you get older as you finally understand that you can't do anything to save that eve-

"Where's Donny?" I heard Louisa yell from the front. "Where's my son?" It was barely over halfway to the town and we might of already lost one of the kids.

Erza looked around for some kind of indicator of where he is. I smelled the air for any sign too. I heard a slight whimper in the air and whipped my head towards the sound. In that direction, I smelled the most familiar smell that I was forced to memorize after years of hunting and battles. Blood. Way in the back. Erza followed my gaze and looked. She widened her eyes.

"One Infected with the boy. Poses a threat. Unsure if there are more lurking," Hayden said. "Far back in the grass."

Shit, I thought. I glared at Natsu, paced two of my left fingers to my forehead, and raised four metal fingers. He nodded and understood.

"Position Four! Gunmen and Swordsmen surround the cargo and personnel. Archers stand behind them. Healers, stand ready." After a short pause, Natsu turned to me. "Weapons, locked, loaded, and ready."

I ran to where the kid was. I pulled out one of my guns from my belt and a round. I loaded the gun as I was closing in on them. I pointed my gun and perfectly aimed for the Infected's head, arm, and chest. The sounds of bullets firing rang in the air. I saw Donny hunched over the Infected, gripping his wrist.

I glared down at him: What happened?!

He understood as he started spilling the beans. "I was playing with some of my friends at the back of the group. I heard a sound and I went to go look for it. I found that-" he pointed to the dead Infected body "-and I thought it was a wounded animal." I raised an eyebrow at him, questioning whether he was stupid or genuine. "Mommy never told me what they looked like in real life. All she said was that the Infected were fallen angels that looked exactly like angels but wore black clothes and had black wings."

I realised, it wasn't completely the kid's fault that an Infected got so close to him. Louisa didn't tell him anything about the Infected before they left for the trip. I couldn't blame him, he didn't know any better with his mother sheltering him from the reality of the world we live in.

This isn't the place for children of any village to be sheltered away from the truth of our survival. And it's no excuse for it if you say that we will be fine because of our armada. Just one armada isn't enough to fend off of a hoard of Infected.

Donny screamed in pain, gripping his wrist, and I realized that he was bitten by the Infected just before I killed it. I grabbed his wrist and saw that the wound was already blue. I grabbed a knife from my boot and cut his shirt open. The infection had already reached his heart. If it didn't spread as quickly as it did, the most we would have to do was cut the boy's arm off. But, the infection spreads faster in children's bodies.

My face turned cold. As I knew it was the idiot mother, who sheltered her child away from the world, who ultimately killed the boy. Even if she did unknowingly. He was beyond saving now. I knew what I had to do, but I rather would have someone else do it for me now.

I took the gun that I killed the Infected with and loaded if up with another bullet. I heard the rest behind me muttering things about it's a shame or that he was a good boy who didn't listen. The boy's mother stood out louder than the rest. Screaming for me to stop or to another around her to stop me. I turned back to look at her. I saw Erza and her husband holding her back from ripping me to shreds.

"NO!" Louisa screamed. "DON'T TAKE MY BABY! NOT MY BABY!"

I understood that it was hard for a mother to watch her child be killed in front of her eyes. It's every parent's nightmare to see their child turn into an Infected right before their eyes. But, I needed to protect the rest of the villagers from any kind of threat. I had to kill Donny.

"Miss…"Donny asked in a kind of nervous child voice. Scared but in wonder of what's gonna happen next. I raised the gun up to the boy's head and readied it to shoot. "Mommy…What's happening?"

"NO! NOT MY BOY!" Louisa screamed. Fighting back against Erza and her husband trying to get to her son.

"Goodbye Donny-Boy," Antoine said to his son.

"Papa?" he asked.

The loud ringing from the gun echoed in my ears as I watched blood escape Donny's forehead from the bullet hole. His eyes were wide as he fell over. Dead. The others were safe with the cost of a child. I couldn't really hear the cries of horror as most of the villager women haven't seen death at their feet before. I bent down t close the boy's curious green orbs. Curious until the second he died. I heard Louisa yell at me not to touch her son as if he was still alive.

I stood up again and walked back towards the group. I looked to Natsu and Shepherd. I motioned my head towards the corpses and they went.

"YOU KILLED MY SON!" Louisa screamed. She managed to get away from Erza and her husband and ran towards me. I grabbed her by her wrist and gripped it until she fell to her knees.

I grabbed my little black book from Erza and started writing in it. I shoved it towards the closest person to me, Gray. He read it over and his dark blue eyes widened. He looked at me to double check if it's what I wanted them to hear from me. I nodded sternly and he sighed.

"Whatever you say Chief," Gray said. Gray cleared his throat before reciting what I wanted to let everyone to know.

"Your son wouldn't be dead right now if it weren't for your sheltering. If you hadn't told him a highly inaccurate version of an Infected your son would know what an Infected looked like in real life. He would've ran for help. This is a message for you and for all parents; we are not in a position to shelter our children from the truth. They will eventually encounter with one of them and will die if they are sheltered from the truth. Remember this day as the day when the children in our village can no longer be hidden away from our reality."

Everyone nodded and stayed quiet for the rest of the trip. I could hear the women, including Erza as she was the sociable accepted one between us two, comforting Louisa. Gray was talking to Antoine, who probably reminiscing about Donny and his young life. Natsu walked beside me.

"You okay?" he asked; I nodded. "Was there anything we could do to save him?" I shook my head and pointed to my heart. "Is that so then. You did the right think then. I know you don't want to compromise the safety of the others for one person." I looked up to him with a look in my eyes: He was a boy, Natsu. Five years old Natsu. He showed a small smile. "I know that Luce." It was like he was reading my mind. "But there's nothing you could've done to help. It was bad. You saw it yourself." He looked out to the horizon. He raised his hand towards the direction.

I looked up and saw the sun setting over the set of hills that divided other villages from the Market Village. As we got closer to the town, I wondered if the merciless killing of children will ever end. I reconsidered if shooting the boy in the head was proper enough to end a child's life. It wouldn't be the first time to kill a child. I've killed many Infected children before him. And I know it wouldn't be the last.

Yep. That's how their apocalyptic life is like. The next chapter will have a little more NaLu, with Natsu's overprotective self of course.

Thanks for reading and don't forget to check out my other content and take the poll on my profile. Let me know what ya guys think the story so far by leaving me a review or sending me PM. That's all for now, but I'll see you guys in the next chapter! Tati