Lucy Heartfilia was the apple of her parents' eye. The sole heiress to the Heartfilia Konzern, an ever-expending collection of companies her parents worked hard to acquire and grow. Jude adored how much his daughter looked like his wife; Her beauty had captured him years ago, but her smarts kept him in track. Layla loved the confidence the young girl already displayed in herself and her dreams, seeing her husband in the spunky, go-getter attitude. While Layla pushed Lucy to follow her dreams and fed her fantasies, Jude encouraged her studies; He wanted her to be fully prepared when she was to take over the company. Together the two made sure Lucy's childhood was full of love and knowledge; They made sure she wanted for nothing.

Lucy adored both of her parents but was drawn to her mother. When not attending her studies, the young blonde followed her mother around. She eagerly soaked up the magic filled stories the older Heartfilia would tell her at bedtime and would even swear her mother glowed like a star when she smiled. Lucy especially loved her mother's laugh, it made even her stern looking father soften at the edges; it showed Lucy what true love looked like when her father looked at her mother that way. She wanted to find that for herself. It was around this time Lucy started to get the sensation of being watched.

Whenever Jude was away on business meetings, Lucy had the most fun. Layla having an eccentric and eclectic assortment of 'friends' that seemed otherworldly. Their adoration for little Lucy almost as strong as her mother's. Lucy never had a dull moment with them. They kept her mind off the sensation of being watched. Cancer always had her hair in the latest fashions and trends. Aquarius, though tough with her love, taught Lucy valuable lessons. Leo was her favorite playmate, having endless amounts of energy and purring like a kitten when Lucy stroked his hair. What lucy loved the most though was watching the way they interacted with her mother. They treated Layla like family, and she treated them with the same fond respect. Lucy wanted to have a connection like that. She looked up to her mother in every way, wanting to be just like the sweet natured older woman. Jude would often come home with gifts for both of his girls, excited to hear about their adventures without him.

The day her mother got sick, Lucy started to understand what it meant to become desperate. Jude did everything in his power to get Layla the best medical care that money could buy. Nothing worked. The day that Layla died, Lucy and Jude's world crumbled. Jude became withdrawn and money obsessed, completely unable to look at his daughter; All he saw when he looked at her was Layla and the image haunted him. Lucy's life became devoid of warm smiles and laughter. Layla seeming to suck the magic out of the family when she died. Lucy couldn't understand what all the money in the world was worth if her mother couldn't be here with her. Jude's cold shoulder hurting her more then he cared to see; she lost not one but two parents the day her mother died. This was the time that she started to appreciate the unseen eyes on her. At least now she didn't feel so alone.

Her father's cold exterior toward her only got icier the older she got. She'd learned to accept the feeling of isolation. Lucy spent all her time in the mansion, being homeschooled and attending virtual business meetings. Her life seemed bleak and endless. Even worse she could barely remember what her mother looked like; the servants of the manner commented often that she was Layla's spitting image. Lucy started to spend more time looking in the mirror: studying the shape of her eyes, the color, her hair, her figure, her shape. She had one picture left of her mother, tucked away and hidden carefully under her pillow; the image becoming harder to see the older it got. Her mother was beautiful, and she looked just like her; How could she not think of herself as beautiful too? That was the start of her 'vanity' as her father liked to scoff. To Lucy it was just a way for her to remember the woman she missed most of all. The lost relationship between father and daughter wore heavy on the young heiress; her heart breaking silently in the quiet hours of night. Her tears were her only companion. Those and the ever-present feeling of being watched. Sometimes she could swear she could feel a strong heat, fueled by anger wash over the room. The blonde never sure where it came from or what for.

By Lucy's 18th birthday her isolated and sheltered life became stressful. The young heiress struggling with her now alcoholic father and the failing of the family business. Jude having finally succumbed to his bottled-up grief. Lucy refused to let the company her mother had worked so hard to help run fall to ruins. She exhausted herself attempting to complete school and bring the company back up from the red herself. She tried not to watch her father drink himself to an early grave. Well relatively early.

"You have no idea what you're doing Layla," Jude slurred from the chair he was sprawled on, "You're going to ruin the business, then what is Lucy going to have?" Lucy would usually ignore her father's drunken rants, focusing on compiling the sales reports to send to the business accountant. "Layla," Jude would sigh out and stare unseeingly at Lucy. She couldn't stand it anymore.

"Mom's dead, dad." The young heiress sighed sadly, "She's been dead- "Lucy was cut off by a sharp slap to the face; She'd been unaware of her father moving.

"I don't want to hear another word from you," Jude hissed before staggering back to his chair. It was the first time Lucy had ever been physically hit. She thought the emotional pain was worse. This started a new, albeit abusive, family tradition.

By Lucy's 21st birthday, she'd become a professional at hiding her bruises and keeping her drunken father out of the spotlight. She'd managed to stabilize the Heartfilia Konzern and was working her way through school with a major in Business and a minor in creative writing. A passion she couldn't let die, no matter how much following it reminded her of her mother. Lucy had matured into her curvy form, being heavily admired by those around her. She perfected the persona of a healthy family for company interviews, fearing what would happen to the reputation of her beloved company if they found out her father was an abusive alcoholic.

During the abusive years, lucy still felt like she was being watched. The feeling hot on her skin like a brand. Heat would flare whenever Jude laid a hand on her and she was starting to fear that she was losing it. The constant feeling of being watched making Lucy a little paranoid, afraid the secret would be exposed; she worked too hard for that to happen. She'd sacrificed so much. Much to the young heiress's distress, she started dreaming about the death of her father; The loving father he was had died the same day her mother had. It hurt to see him the way he was now.

Lucy was caught off guard one day when she found out her father had suffered a heart attack while she was in class. Her morbid wish coming true pushed Lucy into nightmares for weeks. She felt responsible.

Now she was truly and honestly alone. Lucy couldn't tell if she was relieved or sad.

Natsu Dragneel was the boisterous hatchling of two fire dragons. The supernatural world the young fire dragon called home was perfect for his explosive exploration. His father, Igneel, was proud of the way he commanded their element, showing more promise than he could have hoped for; his mother worried for their home.

The young drake became known for his destructive tendencies, his infancy plagued by sneezes that burned down entire forests and tantrums that caused the eruption of volcanos within the human realm. The older Natsu got, the more control he exhibited and the more the other beings let out a sigh of relief. There was nothing scarier than a dragon that couldn't control their element.

Though the young dragon was carefree and reckless, he displayed a fierce loyalty to those he considered his friends. Parading protective instincts that promised retaliation to anyone that hurt what he considered family. Natsu emulated his father, wanting to display the same traits he saw in the older dragon. His father seemed larger than life to him and completely unbeatable. When Igneel began teaching the younger dragon about self-defense and about what it meant to be a dragon, Natsu couldn't have been more excited. His friends, a young valkyrie and an ice spirit, wouldn't hear the end of it; they became irritated with the fact that it was ALL the young dragon wanted to talk about but didn't have the heart to ruin his happiness.

It was during the training the Natsu first laid his eyes upon the most beautiful girl in the world. He'd been left to stare into the fireplace, instructed by his father that he wasn't to move until he could use the fire like a looking glass, a sort of portal to other realms. It took a massive amount of concentration, and frankly, Igneel didn't think he would have the patience. Natsu, on the other hand, was fueled by the desire to impress his father and prove he was capable of anything the older dragon was. So, he sat there and stared and stared and stared until he thought his eyeballs were going to fall out of his head. Right when he was ready to give up an image waivered in the fire before solidifying; it shimmered with the heat but Natsu could make out a young girl, maybe around his age? Her blonde hair shone, glowing brighter than the surrounding fire and the young drake found himself instantly smitten. The longer he stared, the more she sparkled. Something about her made him feel all warm and fuzzy inside.

He asked his father about her the first chance he had. Igneel, surprised by Natsu's revelation, asked the younger dragon to show him what he had seen. So, Natsu did. Igneel explained that Natsu was looking into the human realm; a realm that ran parallel to theirs, but time flowed differently. His father also explained that not just anyone from the human realm was aware of supernatural beings, just a few that could tap into the magic that made supernatural beings what they were; Families that practiced witchcraft and could connect fully to the "other-side" as they called it. From that point on Natsu couldn't seem to help but look in on the shiny girl.

Every time he peered in on her he was happy to see that she was smiling and laughing; absolutely spoiled by her parents and those around her. He slowly learned everything he could about her: her favorite color was pink, she admired her mother, and her name was Lucy. Natsu thought her name was beautiful. Whenever he wasn't practicing with his father, he was watching Lucy. His obsession with her raging out of control, but that was the way of dragons.

Natsu worried when lucy's mother fell ill and despaired when she died; he didn't like the way her smile dimmed, and the way her world seemed to narrow. He especially didn't like the fact he couldn't help her, constantly sticking his hands in the fire to try and hold her. He couldn't imagine what it would be like to lose his own hero.

Natsu raged at Jude, unable to comprehend the older man's cold shoulder. Wasn't that the daughter he loved with his entire being? Wasn't that the daughter that his late wife had undeniably adored? How could he not see the pain he was inflicting on Lucy when he ignored her. The young drake raged at the fact that his treasure's heart was breaking and no-one but him seemed to care. No-one but him paid her any attention. All Natsu could do was watch Lucy's life become a shell of what it used to be and that made him sick with anger. If only he could be there for her.

On the night of Lucy's 18th birthday, Natsu's own world crumbled. His family's nest attacked by a crazed dragon and a dark wizard with a sick desire to fully harness the power of a dragon under his command. Acnologia had a score to settle with Igneel, festering a hatred for the dominant fire dragon after a crushing defeat a century earlier; the black dragon was talked into revenge by Zeref, who had his eyes on the nests prized hatchling: Natsu. The young drake could only watch in horror as his father fought, sustaining as many injuries as he was inflicting. His fear only mounting the second Igneel fell and did not get back up; Natsu swore he saw red and raced headfirst into the fray.

It was days later when Natsu came back too, not feeling quite like himself. He woke suspended in a thick solution in what appeared, to him, to be a giant glass container. He couldn't move, he couldn't talk, all he could do was think and stare at the raging fire on the other side of the room.

During this time Natsu learned about what happened after his father fell through the ramblings of Zeref: He'd managed to kill Acnologia but had suffered fatal wounds himself and died. Zeref had been all too excited to take the young hatchlings corpse and attempt a way to reanimate him, mainly through the work of dark magic. He'd enticed the soul of a demon into the young drake and was surprised at the change in the dragon's appearance! It was also at this time that Natsu learned that his feelings for lucy had started to take on a darker and more twisted interest, much to his horror.

Floating in this liquid prison, Natsu could only display frustration at his predicament. He was constantly fighting back a rage that scared him. That was so unlike him. The physical changes he viewed through the reflection in the glass made him pause, he almost didn't recognize himself. On his head sprouted short but rather sharp looking black horns, his hands were tipped with deadly looking claws and his fangs seemed even sharper than he remembered. To keep him from slipping completely into insanity, he went back to watching Lucy. He was happy to see that he still had control over his element, over fire. The young drake (could he even call himself that anymore?) was horrified to see the love of his life with a giant bruise across her face. The rage he felt made the liquid he was suspended in boil.

Weeks turned to months and FINALLY Zeref seemed to think him worthy of talking too. The fledging found himself constantly angry, thinking of ways to make the wizard before him pay. He'd taken Natsu away from everything he loved: his father, his friends and most importantly, Lucy. Just for that alone he deserved to die. Zeref rambled on about how he finally managed to make the strongest monster in all of history and with his creation he could very well rule the world. Natsu was no longer himself, he was "E.N.D." as he was told. He detested that acronym and vowed never to use it, even if it were just to spite the wizard that held him captive.

To bid his time until he could shred the idiot wizard before him, he obsessed over Lucy; became more possessive and sadistic in his thinking. He hated that her father put his hands on her but loved the look of the dark marks that marred her perfect skin. She would look better if he put those on her, to show his claim. She did belong to him after all. Natsu made sure to note every time a new bruise bloomed its way across Lucy's skin, a silent promise to end Lucy's suffering. He was amazed by her tenacity and brains; astounded that she'd been able to bring her family's business back while completing school and dealing with a drunk of a father. He watched with fascination as she applied and made it into college. He found her so admirable and so very much his.

Natsu finally snapped when he witnessed Jude punch Lucy in the stomach. In a place the drunken man deemed alright because "it was easy to hide." The newly minted demon's rage boiling over the top at the loud sobbing that was coming from his prized possession's mouth. If she was going to cry like that he would prefer it to be from his hand and not entirely just from pain. He decided it was time to finally end it; his dreams of killing Jude were so strong he could taste that man's blood.

The young demon found Jude asleep in his study the following day, thankful the drunk continued to stoke the fire before passing out. He had made sure Lucy wasn't at home, not sure how the amount of energy he was about to use would affect her. Natsu poured everything he had into the flames in front of his makeshift prison, hoping he could do what he had planned. The fire hissed angerly and leaped high but that only spurred the angry drake on. The more energy he used, the angrier he let himself get, the more his prison bubbled until finally he felt it: the pull. He wasn't sure how he did it, but he found himself, or at least a copy of himself made from fire standing in Jude's study. The drunk completely unaware of the danger he was in. Natsu couldn't help the smile that almost split his face. He was going to have fun with this one, make him suffer twice as much as he had made Lucy.

E.N.D didn't feel as satisfied as he thought he would when Jude woke to find him leering over him. He didn't feel satisfaction at the screaming the man did. He didn't feel good when the man pleaded for his life. Instead, his rage only mounted when Jude offered to give him his daughter in exchange for his life. The demon couldn't bring himself to feel any remorse as his clawed hands shot around Jude's disgusting neck and squeezed. He only started to feel better when the man's terror mounted, and his heart started to struggle under the adrenaline. He needed to make sure this man knew why he was going to die. So, he told him:

"This is for every bruise and mark you've put on Lucy with your disgusting fucking hands," Natsu snarled, his claws digging painfully into the neck of the piece of shit in his grasp. His vehemence and the fact that he was made of fire now made Jude's skin blister. "This is for every tear you've made her shed and for every. Single. Fucking. Instance you've ignored her. If you don't wish to care for her, then I'll happily take her off your hands. Or maybe I'll take her away from your cold fucking corpse," He hissed. His rage simmered under the surface and he felt a giddy kind of feeling in his chest the moment Jude's heart went into cardiac arrest. Natsu wanted it to be painful and wanted to watch. So, he did. The minute he knew Jude was dead, Natsu found himself back in his prison.

Only this time he was naked and shivering on the floor. The glass container used to house him had shattered and the liquid had been evaporated. The energy he had expended to kill the bastard that was Lucy's father had been too much for his makeshift jail cell. He was free. Natsu stood up and growled low in his throat, a nasty smile clawing its way across his face. Red scales flecked along his skin and his eyes glowed a fierce red.

He couldn't wait to get his hands on Zeref.

Authors note:

I think ya'll will notice the story title from my one shot drabble series. This first chapter was kind of just a background for both characters- its rushed for reason and more of these elements will be explored as the story progresses. I'm just way more excited to get into the abusive love aspect...because I'm sick and twisted. bye now!