Few Hours Previous (Lucy's POV)
She had noticed the second he came in view, but prayed that the people surrounding her hadn't. He looked unreal, with pink hair and onyx eyes. For a few brief seconds, she had wondered what it would be like if it was him dancing with her, instead of the men of her pack and others. He looked so different; each of his features was striking and new. It was her first time seeing an outsider like him.
She realized that if anyone else had spotted him, it would've been uproar, so she took it upon herself to keep him a secret. Every time someone's gaze would travel towards his general area, she would try her hardest to keep all eyes on her, so she danced.
The night went by in a blur, faces flashing in and out of her view, each bringing different offerings of words. The taste of foreign foods was rich in her mouth, and laughter easily ran off the tip of her tongue. For once in a very long time, she felt okay with where she was, but she knew deep down, she would feel more okay if the man across the river was there with her.
She shook her head, trying to get such desperate thoughts out of her head, she spun in a small circle as she once again focused on the task at hand, having fun. It was moments in time like this that made her glad she was living and breathing.
She never realized just how fragile moments in time could be, until they were being squeezed in front of her very eyes.
There was fire, and screams. A child was latching onto her hand tightly, but it went unnoticed by Lucy, as she looked at the men who were occupied with the task of ripping her clan apart. Her body ran cold as she tried to make sense of what was going on. Her eyes searched back and forth quickly, keeping count of everyone she could. Her heart was thudding in her ears, hands shaking. The urge to vomit settled into the pit of her stomach.
A few feet away from her, a woman sobbed uncontrollably as she cradled her lost husband, her skin taking on a new sickly red tone that could only be known as blood.
The men started rounding up the women, prodding them and poking them as they shoved them into a tight circle. The men whistled and catcalled, vile words shooting through her veins as she watched.
The child behind her screamed, and she was unbearably aware of the hot burn of the fire, and the clammy, cold hand of the blue haired child beside her. It was Wendy.
Her sweet, young, sister like friend, was screaming bloody murder as she watched horror envelope in front of her naïve eyes. Wendy was known for her kind heart, contagious kindness, and her gentle self all together. She was becoming one of the best healers in the clan, which surprised many due to her age. Lucy knew all Wendy wanted to do at this direct moment, was help, but like Lucy, she was probably stuck to the ground with fear too.
She screamed for Grandine over and over, sobbing and screaming. The more she screamed the more attention she drew.
Lucy let out a subtle gasp, clasping her hand over Wendy's mouth. The men had already noticed, and were making their way towards the two with malicious expressions, and sinister eyes.
A calloused hand was suddenly swiftly grabbing hers, pulling her and Wendy along through the forest.
She caught an eyeful of pink as her feet slapped against the ground, not daring to stop. Something rang in the back of her mind, telling her she knew this mysterious person. Her chest was aching as she let herself be dragged by this unknown, yet known man, and she soon wondered just how long they had been running for, it seemed that time had been lost after her first step away from the bloodshed that lied behind them.
She finally mustered up the courage to look back, only to see fire, the men must've gone, and took the women with them.
Her eyebrows furrowed as they came to a halt, becoming aware of how taxing the whole situation was on her body. She looked towards Wendy, to find the girl in a much similar state, with her hands on her knees, taking deep gulps of breaths.
She finally looked towards the male, eyes widening slightly as she focused on his tanned skin, sharp eyes, and salmon pink hair.
He looked over her shoulder with a worried expression, and his fingers fidgeted with the hem of his pants.
"We should keep going, they could be following us." He turned back, much to her uncomfortableness, the last thing she wanted to see right now was a back, but maybe it was better after all, because it hid the fear that had to been taking form on her face.
"Okay." She attempted to respond, but all that came out was a scratchy whisper.
He started walking, sniffing the air every few moments. She quietly wondered, but her curiosity soon slipped away as Wendy grabbed a hold of her hand again.
Wendy's hand had brought back the terror of the night, yet she still gripped the young girl's hand with a motherly touch.
0-0-0-0
She sat up, sweat dripping down her back. Her chest rose and fell heavily as she took loud, deep breaths. Wendy slept beside her, curled up into a tight ball.
She let a hand rest on her chest as her eyes landed on the pink haired stranger, no, not stranger, savior.
He had told them his name earlier in the night, when they had first set up camp.
"Natsu Dragneel." He had uttered out, playing with the white scarf that hung around his neck.
She introduced herself 'Lucy Heartfilia' tumbling from her lips rather ungracefully.
"Wendy Marvell." Wendy whispered, looking down at the ground with round eyes.
He had cooked them a meal, well, more burnt it, but it was still comforting none the less. Kindness seemed to radiate from him, as if you could stand in a five foot radius, and all your problems would be cured.
He was now awake and staring right back at her with wide, curious eyes.
"Are you alright?" His clear, boyish voice rang out.
"Yeah, I was just thinking." She answered softly, settling back down.
"Alright, goodnight Luce."
She hardly knew him, and yet this man had already found a nickname for her. She furrowed her eyebrows, knowing it should have some negative affect on her, but all she could feel was a bubbling feeling in the pit of her stomach. She closed her eyes; hoping sleep would work its wonders.
But all through the night, thoughts of pink plagued her head, leading her to a night of restless sleep.