Where was he? It was suspiciously quiet for sure.

His eyes snapped open with a gasp, as he noticed the scenery changing fast, like he was continuously plummeting downwards, on an elevator with the cord cut.

He then realized it WAS an elevator. Falling fast, very fast, toward a light in the distance, below them.

He had no idea how he ended up here, all he remembered was being in a fight with a dragon, then getting a direct hit... was he dead? Was he being punished for his sins in life? He did kill a lot...

"Why am I here..?" he found himself asking, to no one in-particular, but found an answer in the cloaked figure by the elevator buttons

"This is merely how you lived your life before..." it said, without moving "E.N.D."

E.N.D. gulped as it spoke his name.

The scene appeared of a town, all in famine, war raged in the background, and he himself feeling something he never felt before. Sympathy. Human emotions. He watched as a small child, not much older than 10 charged into battle only to get brutally slaughtered by the rage.

E.N.D. gasped, pressing his palms on the glass doors as they quickly slid past "Hey..!" his sentence died in his throat, as it tightened in pain for the small boy.

"You had the choice to save him back then." The figure spoke again, before returning to silence

He was right though. He recalled this moment. He watched that child die in front of him.

Another scene, a town blissfully unaware of the calamity that was coming. The giant demon, Deliora came, and proved it's title of the destruction demon once more. children and women died, and one man stood bravely in front of his wife and kid, only to be destroyed, family and all.

Another unknown experience.

Tears trailed down his cheeks silently, as millions of more scenes like this came and went, and he could have saved them ALL

"Open these doors damnit!" He cried out, distraught by the destruction he was unable to prevent, even though he wanted so badly to save these people

"E.N.D... why do you call yourself that?"

He knew that wasn't his true name

"Why do you constantly deny what you truly want?"

How could this guy possibly know?

"You never got to be the children you murdered."

"stop..."

"You were jealous of those kids."

"stop it!"

"those families."

"Shut up!"

"What you wanted the most... you could never have... Natsu Dragneel."

"I SAID SHUT IT!"

He grabbed the guy, and his eyes widened as his hood fell, revealing a face too familiar.

himself.

But he wasn't a demon, here were no horns, no wings, no scales, he was a normal human. Eyes hard, but soft, and instead of a sickening blood red, they were a deep black. colorless, yet all colors as everything reflected off them. It was who he most wanted to be.

"Y-You..."

"You have a choice.." He said, pushing a button as the doors opened, whipping their hair around from the immense speed, and wind pressure. "You can be the protector you wanted to be. You can find the family you want." The other him looked him dead in the eyes, as E.N.D. looked down, and saw a river a fire beneath them, where he would surely cease to exist.

"Continue to death, and the world may suffer."

It was getting close, and for once, he felt like he was burning up "What can I possibly do?!" He said in a panic, while the him he wished to be stared, emotionless, unfazed.

"Escape this elevator. Jump."

Jump? Was he insane?

he looked down again, and it was getting closer. Well, either way, he was dead...

He took a deep breath and jumped, and suddenly felt lighter. he was suspended as he felt his extra appendages disappear. wings gone. tail faded. horns missing. and he felt his scales slowly fade as well. He was changing. Not just that, he was human.

He never wanted his burden as E.N.D.

All he wanted was to be loved by a family.

He wanted someone to protect.

The most powerful demon alive...

Was no more than a mere child, abandoned by his father at his core.

Igneel searched the area. Surely E.N.D. had been tossed somewhere over here... And he was more surprised he hadn't countered yet. Did he do it? Did he kill him?

He froze as he smelled a familiar scent.

he quickly looked down to find...

A small child. With messy sakura hair, and big, black eyes, that yearned for attention. To be loved.

As Igneel kneeled to inspect this small child, he then realized, E.N.D. hadn't died, but became what he really was on the inside.

A child.

Lost.

Scared.

Lonely.

The fire dragon scooped up the kid in his claw. With some teaching... maybe this child, once trapped by his inescapable fate, could change the course of history.

Igneel smiled a bit "Just call me your dad."

Natsu smiled his first real smile, in this lifetime, and the last.

"D.. ad...~"

OK, The thought behind this was pretty much, END/Natsu, was born as a full grown, all-powerful demon, and was tossed aside by his "father" Zeref, and he was incredibly jealous of the little kids, who were loved, had families, friends, and just plain, got to enjoy their childhood, and it truly hurt him cuz at his center, he himself yearned to be a child. Which is why he's so childish now, because it's what he wanted more than anything this is half theory half imagination :3 I hope you aren't TOO weirded out by this XD