Disclaimer: I do not own Fairy Tail.

A/N: so a while back I put up a poll asking whether or not you guys wanted to see me turn Everything into a multi-chapter fic. (was previously a one-shot for those who don't know.) And after mulling it over awhile longer-not to mention seeing the lack of NatsuxSting fics in general!-I've decided, I figured why the heck not?

warning(s): AU. Female!Smarter!Darker!Stronger-than-canon!Natsu. Natsu is raised by Acnologia, NOT Igneel.(So don't expect her to be as friendly or warm!) Possible OOCness. Scenarios involving possible adult themes/language/violence.(It's a world of dragons and magic, and Natsu's not entirely the same.)

Enjoy!

Prologue:Glimpses of Gold

Even before she is awake, before he is born, she dreams of him. Of his lonely figure shuffling around and about a throng of people that never seem to notice, much less care about him. He always looks so alone, that heart-wrenching, frustrated look of someone who's lost everything with nowhere else to go, desperately trying to get someone to notice him. And when he fails like all the other times, he will cast his gaze downwards, crestfallen, and usually that's where the dream ends for her, watching that lone tear escape down onto his cheek.

Only this time things are different, he turns, focusing sharp-slanted eyes unmistakably on her. His hair seemed brighter somehow, shining like beautiful strands of gold in the light of the sun outside while his lips curl downwards into an impressive sneer for a child his age seeming to be making some kind of remark, a scathing one at that, judging from his expression, but the dreams ends when her vision tunnels without warning.

She was burning, burning the fire consuming her was unlike any kind of pain she could imagine and the pure terror that settles over her heart, the wickedness emanating from all around her- what is- ?

There's no time.

And her eyes fly open, an unearthly howl piercing through the dead of night. She is up and running to her brother's bed then her parents before she is even fully awake, shaking them from their own deep slumber despite the dull ache that settles in her heart and the hazy state of mind they are all in. But the next moment when a set of sharp claws, too big and pointy to be anything remotely human, tears through their home's roof with tremendous ease, they are all wide awake and alert and screaming.

Run! Their mother yells handing her off to her brother because if the look in her eyes was any indication, not all of them were going to make it out of this one alive. They don't bother with belongings before they are outside, after all nothing in that house is worth more than their lives, and Natsu thinks there's nothing more precious than that of her brother's life after seeing their mom and dad get engulfed by raging fire.

"Zeref-nii, I-I'm scared…!"

"Don't worry Natsu, I'll protect you!"

The dragons were huge and terrifying beings, as Natsu learned that day. None seemed to care for the lives they took, or the homes they destroyed while they were rampaging, especially not the one whose flames burned and devoured the soft tender flesh encasing Natsu's all too human heart, wilting it down like fragile petals of a flower leaving nothing left but ashes.

Even her brother's cries wouldn't have been enough to save her.

~x~

She is sure she is dead but strangely she is still able to hear and think and even feel. Though she only feels pain; indescribable, unbearable and surreal pain. It's not at all a pleasant experience, even so she is able to make the faintest murmurs of familiarity, recognizing her brother's emotion-choked words it took a while longer than expected, but...I've finally done it Natsu. You've returned.

There's the sound of warbling liquid all around her, she's not sure what it is, water maybe, letting her consciousness drift away. She just didn't have the energy to move right now really, unable to recall the events prior to that day.

~x~

Acnologia.

It was a name that even the dragons had come to fear, and to see something so large and clearly stronger than humans cower to one? She was in awe. She wanted that kind of power-craved it- if nothing else, then to make the bad flashes of memory go away finally.

He found her in the forest alone, half-dead and with nothing more than the clothes on her back.

"Left to die like the worthless trash you are." Were his first words to her, spoken in a harsh biting manner she would later become accustomed to. First, she needed to deal with the pounding headache in her skull and the dull throbbing coming from her chest, resulting in a crestfallen stare.

She watched a huge black set of talons raise into the sky blocking out the sun, closing in on her-

"Zeref."

She blinked, bewildered when the pain of death was not what she expected. Opening her eyes, she saw a man now. A rather muscular young man with long, dark blue colored hair. He possessed the same sharp gaze as the black dragon she saw only a few moments ago. His attire consisting of a high collared black cloak bearing similar markings to the dragon as well, sharp red claw markings around his neck, a sash around his waist, a gold arm ring tightened around his right upper arm and baggy pants.

"You smell like Zeref, why is that?" His deep baritone voice pulled her stare from the ground, silently prodding her for an answer while looking especially vicious all of a sudden.

"I don't...know who that is," was her meek answer. It wasn't good enough for him, and so he smacked her halfway across the forest with a vicious snarl. Called her stupid for not knowing the name and spitting on her for being so weak as to be incapable of taking such a paltry blow.

There was a dull ache in her chest when she first heard the name, only she didn't know why. She didn't know anybody named Zeref…did she?

He asks again. She shakes her head in refusal again and earns another hard blow to the stomach.

Natsumi learns an important lesson that day though. Power equates to getting answers.

If she wanted to know things, she needed power, much more than any little girl like her could possess, and certainly more than that goody-goody 'Anna' could ever hope to have. So, when Acnologia turns to leave, giving her one last kick for good measure and just for wasting his time. She's swamped by flashes of memory again, seeing docile black eyes and a gentle smile followed by a glint of gold and blue eyes before she finds the strength to stand.

An inner voice spurring her forward, enough to latch onto the edge of the cloak he is wearing, croaking out something that she is unable to hear but is puzzled when his eyes widen in response. Her grip going slack almost instantaneously, pitching forward and into the sweet embrace of sleep once more

When she wakes up, she is in a cave, and seated near the entrance watching her with cold, sharp eyes is none other than Acnologia.

~x~

Makorov Dreyar is an old fool. And Natsumi's not sure if she can bear it for much longer.

"What do you mean you killed them?" His voice held mostly shock, but there was a touch of anger there as well. Natsumi didn't really understand why though, after all she finished her first mission didn't she? Wasn't that all that mattered?

"The mission goal was the elimination of the bandits." She repeated for what felt like the umpteenth time in the last ten minutes, oblivious to the deathly silence that fell over the rest of the guild hall listening. "Some tried to flee, but I disposed of them. Some had the audacity to beg, " her words became a snarl, "so naturally I killed those ones first."

Makorov regarded the girl, someone no older than maybe ten years of age, with barely concealed horror. There was conflicting feelings of anger and a horrible sense of sorrow building in the old guild master's chest at the sheer cruelty of her words, the complete and utter lack of care. 'Were all dragon Slayers this way?' He wondered.

Regardless…

"The job only demanded that you stop the bandits Natsumi, while your method of accomplishing this is entirely up to your choosing, becoming an executioner to them is something no one outside of the Council has the authority to do." Her brows stapled together, clearly trying to comprehend the lack of praise on his part. "For now, I think it best if you reflect on your actions, and the value of life."

"The weak have no value whatsoever, their only purpose is to become fodder for those seeking to test their power."

The response was so sudden and cutthroat that something inside the usually patient old man finally snapped.

"Natsumi!" He roared, releasing a sudden pulsating wave of magic to boot. She blinked, clearly not used to such a show of disapproval from someone she considered a mentor. "Every life has value, be they weak or strong, young or old! Never say such a degrading thing ever again young lady, am I clear?"

Natsumi bowed her head a few moments later. Makorov watched her leave the guild hall immediately after, her retreating frame drawing quite a few looks of fear and hostility from fellow members making Makorov sigh. He tried so very hard with her, he truly did think she had potential, but sadly so few in the guild could even muster the courage to approach the small aloof pinkette.

"Agh! That dumb amoeba brain, I'll go smack some sense into her!" Gray Fullbuster, a boy around Natusmi's own age hollered loudly earning a hard smack to the head from a redhead female behind him, clad in armor and holding a sword on her waist, Erza Scarlet.

"Enough fighting, the master is trying to teach her a lesson!" Erza scolded with no real heat.

And despite himself Makorov felt the barest traces of a smile come onto his face remembering there were still at least a few who hadn't completely given up on Natsumi. Other than himself and Gildarts that is.

~x~

"My name is Lucy. Lucy Heartfilia."

Natsumi sat staring, well okay more like glaring in Lucy's opinion. The brightest thing about the colder girl was her cat which was currently scarfing down as much fish as his little belly could handle. Still, Lucy was nothing if not open to meeting new people.

"I don't care." Natsumi huffed, her cold piercing gaze seeming to go right through poor Lucy who was sitting across from her in the booth earning a nervous laugh from the perky blonde. "You're annoying, so fuck off." Now if Lucy weren't so confident, she might have started bawling at those words, fortunately for her she was surprisingly thick-skinned meaning she could take a good verbal punch or two.

"My, you're quite the conversationalist, aren't you?" Lucy offered instead, trying to lighten the mood with a joke. Admittedly it might not have been her best approach when the glare only increased tenfold. 'Well so much for that then, geez! What's with this girl?' Lucy thought, a small little part of her having the mental debate over whether or not she should just get up and leave when the cat spoke up next.

"Don't mind her, she's still learning her people skills," The blue-furred cat piped up not seeming bothered by the aura of malice that seemed to continuously emanate from the pink-haired girl behind him. 'Isn't he afraid she might skewer him if he talks like that?' Lucy pondered.

"Zip it, cat," The pinkette snapped. And Lucy noticed how it was with a lot less heat in it than when she was the one addressed.

"Now, now Natsumi you can't go around scaring off everyone we meet, how else are we gonna find out where that dragon is?" The cat rebuffed, almost as if scolding a child waving his little blue paw. Watching the small cat admonish the other brought a small smile of amusement to the blonde's face, the smile growing wider when the pinkette responded by flicking a half-eaten fish at the other.

"Natsumi, what's wrong with you? You know you can't throw fish around like that!" The cat cried over another mouthful of said fish.

"Whatever Happy."

Lucy couldn't help herself and started to laugh.

"What's so funny?" The girl Lucy now knew to be Natsumi demanded, looking ready for a fight.

"You named your cat Happy?" The blonde who was holding her sides said, unconcerned by the spike in hostility which was immediately replaced by an owlish stare and light blush.

"S-so?" she stammered in reply.

"It's just for someone who looks so unhappy and is being scolded by a little blue cat named Happy..." Lucy was unable to continue, holding her sides from how hard she was laughing at the irony hearing the other girl let out an indignant noise of embarrassment averting her eyes elsewhere.

"S-shut up!"

Lucy only laughed louder.

Natsumi spent the rest of the time fuming in silence while Lucy wiped her tears away.

"It is pretty funny if you think about it," Happy chimed in.

"I said shut up!"

Lucy wasn't as nervous or afraid after that figuring that if Natsumi didn't follow through on half the death threats she threw at her by then, the pinkette most likely wasn't nearly as deadly of a person as she first perceived. And after hearing Natsumi was raised by a dragon Lucy became all the more certain Natsumi herself was no real monster, though she did have quite the mean streak in her it seemed.

"Really, so you're from the famous guild called Fairy Tail!?" Lucy asked, clapping in delight.

Natsumi wasn't entirely sure why she bothered to listen to all of Lucy's dribble over how great a guild Fairy Tail was, and how she read every issue of Sorcerer's Weekly about them. So long as she could hold her own in a fight, Natsumi didn't see there being an issue.

Looking back on it, she felt her eyes get drawn to Lucy's hair for some reason. The sharp glint of gold that caught the rays of sun reminding her of someone else; like a distant memory she just couldn't seem to recall.

Review.

Hope you enjoyed it, sorry it's kind of on the short side!