Natsu had stilled, body tensed. The path they followed, cutting through the mountain, was long and vacant.

"What is it?" Lucy asked. Her fingers found the soft leather of her whip snug to her hip. Another attack on this mission wouldn't be unexpected. Natsu scented the air audibly ahead of her. When Lucy saw him casually adjust the backpack over his shoulders, her body relaxed.

"Rain is coming. We should find somewhere for the night," he said. Lucy didn't like the thought of another night without a shower. They had to camp plenty of times on this mission. Either they were in the middle of nowhere, or someone would recognize Natsu and refuse their patronage.

"If it's just a little rain, we could keep going for a while," she said. Lucy hoped there would be a town nearby with an inn for them to sleep. She was sure they wouldn't recognize Natsu in the countryside. Locations near busy hubs frequently did and turned them away. Signs reading, "no dragon slayers" were a more common occurrence in cities. When she recalled them, her chest tightened.

Natsu shook his head and rounded the corner to peek past the tree line. The forest around them had plunged into shadow without her notice. The elevated rocks and trees around them covered in lush green moss and brush appeared deep green in the darkening day. There was hardly any blue between the vast amount of gray clouds across the sky. "A massive storm is coming, and I'd rather we not get stuck in it," he said, "I thought I smelt some water up that way." He pointed up at dense trees. "Probably a cave for us to stay."

"Off the trail?" she asked. Lucy was nervous about them going off the planned route, but she trusted Natsu. He laughed at her question, and his expression soft and reassuring.

"Not too far off." Natsu began the slow assent up the rocks. Lucy followed each foot hold he found to pull himself up. He held out a hand every so often to help her over a trickier area. They continued until the cave came into view. The mouth was wide and overgrown with hanging moss and foliage. The scent of the coming rain had become strong enough for Lucy to smell. Natsu stepped into the cave and scented the air. Lucy couldn't feel the presence of anyone inside, at least no magic users, and he nodded for her to follow. The cave itself wasn't deep but was a suitable enough shelter in the storm. Some water trickled down the wall and larger rocks protruded from the floor. They pulled their backpacks from behind them and slid them to the floor. Lucy rolled out her sleeping bag and laid it out for her to sit on. Natsu didn't seem to mind the dirt and sat down across from her leaning his head back against the rock wall.

The storm started as a soft patter against the trees surrounding them. The moss tossed back and forth at the mouth. Lucy pulled her knees against her body and rested her cheek against one. The wind whipped the trees up, and she could hear the cicadas calling out amid it all. Natsu hadn't spoken to her much that day. They had stayed with a couple in a trade town. The woman was warm and inviting, but the man kept a watchful eye on Natsu, as if he would explode inside their home. Lucy awakened in the middle of the night, when Natsu came through the door to the bedroom and collapsed on the bed. She wasn't sure what time it was, but it was late for him to be just shuffling to bed. She turned over and found him battered and bloodied. His eyes shut willing himself to sleep. She had asked him what happened in a soft sleepy voice and sat up to find her handkerchief to clean his wounds. Natsu remained quiet and refused to answer her questions. His silence was unusual, and her heart ached at the sight of him. She knew without words what had happened to him. She didn't want to press further; although, she wished he found comfort in her ear, and could only imagine the struggle he went through to not harm a human. Through their journey he had spoken about the monster they thought he was. Feared the beast so much he softened to their blows and flinched away from their words. Would lashing out at them really make him evil? Make him a monster?

His eyes did not stray from the entrance of the cave, and while his posture was casual, she could see the distance in his gaze.

"Where are you?" she said. Whatever was on Natsu's mind, his thoughts far away, vanished by her words. There was enough light to illuminate the healing cut on his lip and bruise on his cheek. They would fade soon enough, but she knew they would leave scars no one could see.

"What do you mean?"

"You've been deep in thought all day." Natsu lifted his hand to examine it in the fading light. "Is it because of last night?" she asked. She wanted to know about the man who hurt him.

"What if we can't find a way to stop this?" he said. Lucy shifted so she could sit beside him in the dirt and lean her head against his shoulder. Thunder rumbled from outside shaking the cave walls like his trembling palms.

"We will find a way." Somehow, Lucy truly believed they would. There were others searching alongside them. Each dragon slayer was off in pairs hunting for a way to reverse the transformations. The patter of rain became a downpour, and the shadows continued to convulse on the walls with each lightning strike.

"What if I turned into a dragon again and never turn back, Lucy?"

"It wouldn't matter what you looked like," she said, "You're you in every form you take." If only for a while, Lucy hoped her words would reassure him. The sound of the rain splashing against the damp stone pulled at her eyes, but it was Natsu's warmth against her skin that lulled her to sleep.

The waves of heat and power her first clue something was wrong. Lucy had no idea how long she had been sleeping and lifted her head to find Natsu standing in front of her. Flames licked at his skin and wrapped around his body as if they always belonged there, open and seen. He stood ready to fight whatever stood in his way. Her eyes adjusted to the light from the mouth of the cave, some of it blocked by two forms. Lucy could sense they were mages, and most likely looters.

"Fire mage, huh," one figure said, "I'll take that one." Their palm lit up in flame, and she could make out his sharp features in the flickering light. The other figured stepped forward, as if uninterested in Natsu, toward her place on the ground. Natsu shifted his stance to block her from both men. Lucy reached for the keys at her side.

"Natsu, I can take one," she said, eyes focused on the second man. Natsu turned slightly to acknowledge her, but it was enough for the men to find an opening. The fire mage lurched forward and landed a hit to the side of Natsu's face. His body crashed against the rocky back walls of the cave. Debris and rubble trickled down from the ceiling, and a cloud of dirt and rock engulfed Natsu's form. Lucy moved to help him, but the other mage was already stalking toward her. She pulled out Leo's key out of habit and opened the door without a word. Leo emerged from smoke without time to acknowledge her, since the man lifted his hand toward him. Loke flew into the air and collided into the rock ceiling and became pinned. His features twisted and jaw tensed with strain. Debris rained down around them with the pressure. Lucy felt a pull in her stomach and her body began pressing into the ground. An invisible weight trapped her between it and the cave floor. She opened her mouth and loudly labored to catch her breath. She could see Loke trying desperately to do the same, his eyes fixed on her. From the pull, she had dropped her keys, her fingers just out of reach of the key ring. Her heart hammered in her ears as she fought against the invisible weight.

"We forget about gravity even though it presses down on us all the time. I wonder sometimes, what it would be like at the center of the earth," the second man said above her. His eyes widened, a grin spread across his face, and a child-like excitement crept through his laugh. He pointed his palm toward the ground and slowly pressed. Her body felt the effect immediately. She had to do something, lest crush to death by this mage. Her eyes fixed on her key ring and her fingers could do little to wiggle free of the pressure. The blood rushed to her head and her lips opened to catch what little breath she could. Lucy was going to die.

"Natsu!" Leo called in a strained voice. Lucy could tell, from his voice, it took all his strength to emit the sound. The air around her swirled in waves of heat, and spots of light flashed in her vision. Her fingers stretched as far as they could to no avail. Like opening a tight lid, the pressure released. Lucy took a deep breath as she grasped her keys in her hand. The sound of cracking earth and waves of dust kicked up around her. She coughed searching for Loke, who was no longer stuck to the ceiling.

"Loke?" she said. The dust was clearing, and she could hear a great struggle going on outside. From the raised voices, she could tell Natsu had pulled the gravity mage away from them. She reached out through the dust and grasped Loke's wrist. He was unconscious but breathing fine. Her stomach tightened at the sight of him. "I'm sorry," she said and grasped his key. With its ridges and curves so familiar to her fingertips, she sent him back to the celestial realm. On unsteady feet, she pulled herself up and leaned against the cave wall. With the pressure against her released, her body felt as though it would float up to the ceiling.

The cave rocked, and earth trembled beneath her. The clash between the mages had migrated south. Lucy stumbled outside where the light rain dampened her skin. The power she felt crackling in the air sent a chill down her spine. Natsu. She turned toward the noise and began down the hill, scraping her legs against rocks and shrubs. A man's voice rose above the sounds of rain. Lucy held tightly to her keys and followed the noises deeper into the forest. A large tree teetered and fell with a deafening crack. She turned at a large trunk and collided with another figure. His arm barreled into her, and her body plowed into a tree. She righted herself to see the gravity mage. His eyes were wide and his mouth agape. Blood trickled down his cut lip and a burn had emerged below his right eye. He did not stop to speak with her, as she thought he would, and ran frantically in the opposite direction without looking back. She could hear his labored breaths until he was out of sight. Her arm throbbed and blood beaded at her scraped skin. A scream reverberated through the trees from the direction the mage had come. It took a moment for a wall of heat to press her against the trunk. Lucy sprinted toward the cloud of smoke that followed.

When the fire mage came into view, he held his arm and his breath labored. "Fucking animal," he said. His shoulder darkened and peeled from a burn that left the arm useless. It took her a moment to realize he was looking up. Above him was Natsu, but his appearance had changed. His eyes were fierce slits and burned gold. His arms outstretched curled into dark claws, and his body kept airborne by massive red scaled wings. Most of his face and hands covered in the same scales. This was not the first time she had seen it, but she found herself in a familiar sense of awe. Each scale iridescent in the drizzly day sun, brows set in concentration, his mouth slightly agape to reveal tiny fangs, and the physique of a god. Lucy could barely take her eyes off Natsu in this form. This was what the humans feared in the cities, in the countryside, and along their way to find a reversal for these transformations. The dragon slayers were all beginning to feel it, the pull of the dragon within them, of the dragon that they once called a parent. They all knew one day; they would lose themselves in this transformation and become a dragon permanently. Yet, there was always something about Natsu, even now. Even staring up into his eyes she could not see the animal this mage had called him. He would always be Natsu no matter his form.

The wounded mage lifted his hand for, what felt like, his last attack. She could see the swirl of power ripple from his palm where fire began to burn. Her fear rose up in her throat, not for Natsu's safety, but for the mage who was about to attack him. She had to do something. Natsu had not noticed her yet and she did not know how to stop him if he chose to kill this man. He would hate himself for it and she couldn't let that happen. He was already tearing himself apart. Lucy shoved her keys into her holster and grabbed her celestial whip. She allowed the leather to slide through her hand and extend to the ground. Natsu tensed in the air with his eyes zeroed in on his target. The man's flame grew until it was half his size. For a common thief, Lucy thought he had quite a lot of power, but he would not last. Not with fire against Natsu, and the man seemed to be on his last limbs. With a roar, he launched the ball toward Natsu. The dragon slayer lunged toward the blazing ball and inhaled the flames until it vanished. The fire mage paled at his failed attempt. He tried to back away, but his legs wobbled. Natsu's face flushed with the heat of fire he just consumed, and his body continued toward his target. Lucy thought he would have at least hesitated before attacking the terrified man, but he hadn't. She cracked the whip in her hand and swung it toward the man's leg. With a snap, the whip wrapped around his ankle. She pulled his leg hard enough for him to lose balance and fall to his back. With no hesitation, Natsu extended flaming claws toward his target. Lucy pulled with all her might to slide the man's body toward her. Perspiration trickled down her back and dotted her upper lip with nerves and the heat from Natsu's flames. She had to pull the mage out of his trajectory before it was too late. He was too weak to move away, his eyes transfixed on Natsu's scaled body, and lay there in the mud.

"Move," Lucy begged and pulled the whip harder. She felt her heels dig into the damp earth, and his body finally began to budge. As if in realization of his escape, the man clawed his way toward her. She made her last hard tug just as Natsu hit the ground. There was a burst of heat that picked up in the heavy gust of wind. Lucy blocked some of the debris with her arms, hair whipping around her face, and her heart sank when she felt the whip go lax in her hand. She coughed into her arm and, for a moment, felt too afraid to see the aftermath. The dust cleared as she pulled her whip toward her. The humid air went still and quiet permeated the mountain. Natsu stood in front of a crater in the earth. The man sat a few feet away, his body shook, and his face an ashen white. "With whatever strength you have left," she said, hoisting him up, "Leave." Once he was on his feet, he ran on shaky legs. She heard him fall a few times on his way out of the forest. She was too busy meeting Natsu's gaze to watch the man flee. His chest rose and fell with labored breaths and shaking fists. His jaw clenched and relaxed with restraint to finish his job. She could tell he wanted to run after the man, but he kept his gaze on hers like an anchor. He squeezed his eyes shut and started to resemble the Natsu from that early afternoon. His wings closed back into his body, and his claws shrank into human fingernails. He raised his hands up to watch them change. The scales were still slightly visible, but his eyes were the same fierce dragon's gaze. His brows furrowed and sweat glistened off his skin. As the transformations continued, they became more painful. He once told her he thought his body wanted him to stay a dragon, and the pain was just punishment for changing back.

"Thank you, Lucy." His voice was husky and low.

"Of course," she said. Lucy rolled up her whip and tucked it against her hip.

"I wanted to kill him." His eyes snapped toward the forest where the mage had fled. His fists still tightening and relaxing at his side. His brows came together in a painful way, and she knew he had to be warring inside himself. "Can't leave this unfinished." He didn't sound like himself. More side effects of the dragon that lived inside his head.

"You won't kill anybody, Natsu." Natsu's golden dragon eyes locked onto her lips, where her words lingered.

"If you hadn't been there—"

"Like I said, you wouldn't kill anybody."

"I could have." His voice shook like a plea.

"You didn't."

"Lucy, I'm a monster."

"No, you aren't." Lucy shook her head, stood before him, and took his hands into her own. She ran her thumb across the places where scales had jutted from his tan skin. They shook in her grip and were warm in her grasp. "You saved me. You were just protecting me." Natsu didn't respond to this and watched her stroke his skin.

"Then, what am I?" He looked up at her with the eyes of a dragon, but behind them was a well of sadness. She could feel her heart tighten at the desperation in his voice.

"You're Natsu, always." She could already feel the prickle of fresh tears. "You're a protector and a friend. You are loved and you love with all you've got."

"I'm losing myself."

"No matter what form you take, I will follow you wherever you go," she said, gripping his hands a little tighter. She meant it. They would go on this journey for as long as it took. Natsu eyed their hands closed together.

"I shouldn't have taken this power." The shadow of the dragon seed had lingered in his thoughts since he had made his choice.

"It's a gift to protect you and those around you." Lucy leaned in to press her forehead against his. "Thank you." His eyes widened and a pool of green stared back at her. His thoughts were no longer far away but carried in his stare.

"For what?"

"For protecting me." They stood there for some time as the day turned to the drowsy colors of evening. They went back to the cave, gathered their things, and followed the trail down the mountain.

This is a companion one-shot to "The End," which is published now. You do not have to read one to get the other. Hope you enjoyed!