A/N: PLEASE DON'T READ ANY FURTHER IF YOU HAVE YET TO READ 'ENIGMA'. THIS IS A SEQUEL SO UNLESS YOU WANT TO BE CONFUSED, PLEASE TURN ON BACK AROUND AND PROCEED TO 'ENIGMA'. :)

For those of you who HAVE read 'Enigma' already, I thank you so much for giving me a second chance with this story. I hope you love this one, too!

Disclaimer: The plot line may be mind, but the characters I use are not (except for Aiden whom you meet in this chapter). They belong to Fairy Tail's rightful king, Mashima.

The town was pitched black, only lit by a few sparse street lights here and there; the odd one flickering off and on. Silence engulfed this place. Many people were long ago tucked away in their beds, dreaming pleasantly as darker happenings lurked under the veil of darkness. Nothing seemed to stir or make a noise. Some would even call this time of night peaceful were it not for the steadily growing feelings of dread that filled in the cracks. Something was stirring up the shadows.

As if to challenge the night's authority, a soft clicking sound broke the silence. It steadily grew until finally the source came into view, stepping into the light the street lamps had to offer. It was a young woman, short in stature, but she made up for it in her sensual curves and clothing that left nothing to the imagination. Her heels, the culprit of the sudden onslaught of noise, clicked against the cement as she made her way to wherever it was she was going. She too, showed signs of worry, almost as if she felt the creeping sense of fear that seemed to plague this street in particular, as well. Her hands grabbed hold of her jacket, pulling the ends together and wrapping it around herself, as if the sinking feeling she held were all because of the usual night chill.

As if this all was not peculiar enough, the sound of a metal trash can hitting the ground jarred the young woman enough to make her jump and emit a cry of shock. Her heartbeat picked up, turning to see what caused the clang and, seeing nothing, the woman collected herself and took a deep breath before she pushed on; her pace noticeably quicker.

Her look of relief was abundantly obvious when she caught a glimpse of what must have been her place. She was practically skipping down the rest of the street before her, her hands releasing their tight grip on her jacket as she reached the bottom of the stairs.

However, just as her hand went to reach for the railing of the stairway, another hand of sorts reached out from the shadows of the alleyway next to her, gripping her loose jacket and ripping her away from safety within seconds. It all happened quicker than she could grasp, not even able to let out a sound before it was too late and she was pulled into the darkness.

Nothing but the eerie, wet sound of something abnormal and horrific stealing away its prey could be heard before plaguing silence returned once more.

"I'm all finished up front, Wendy!" Lucy called, a smile reaching her lips as she sneaked a quick peek into the back room that served as a break room for her and the other employees, "Anything else I can do before I take off?"

A smaller girl with long flowing dark hair turned to the blonde with a smile, "Thank you Lucy but I should be okay until Romeo comes to take over his shift!"

Lucy beamed back at the sweet girl, "Okay well, I'm off then! See you later, Wendy," and with an added wave that the girl returned, Lucy made her way outside and to the rest of her afternoon.

The blonde girl paused when she reached the sidewalk, taking a much needed moment to stretch out and lean her head back, soaking up the sun's rays and the smell of fresh air that hit her immediately upon exiting the small coffee shop she was employed by. The young blonde did not hate her job, necessarily, but it was not exactly something she desired to do the rest of her life either. Lucy had hoped for something more after graduating from the local community college nearby but with the current economy the way it was and all Lucy was not alone in her unemployment and less than desirable working environments. Nonetheless, Lucy adored the people she worked with, becoming quick friends with Wendy, as well as Levy, whom she met at community college and had aided the blonde in gaining employment at all.

Speaking of Levy, Lucy thought as she tugged her cell phone out of her pants' back pocket, the blonde usually received a text or voicemail from the blue haired friend of hers. The two girls had eventually become great friends after Lucy slowly learned to open up again to others back in their freshman year of college. It had been a long process, but Levy had been persistent and Lucy could not be more grateful for the firecracker that was her best friend and, most recently, her new roommate.

Glancing at her phone though, Lucy frowned. No messages or anything from Levy. The blonde would not worry but she would ask the blue-haired girl what kept her from getting in touch with her. It had become something of a routine between the two of them, keeping each other on top of what the other was doing and knowing roughly when each other's shifts were finished and the like. So, naturally, Lucy thought it odd that her roommate had not at least sent a text.

She must be busy, Lucy thought, as she slipped her phone back into her jeans' pocket and headed to the back where her car was parked. It was not a nice car but it did the job, Lucy smiled when her old beater of a car came into view. The forest green, four door used automobile had been a godsend when the blonde had been able to afford to purchase the thing a few years ago. Being able to get to and from work without depending on the always-forty-minutes-late public transit to be late was a life saver.

Hopping into the car, she started it up and decided it was high time she picked up her son from his after school program.

Yes, Lucy Heartfillia had become a single mother of one. Aiden Heartfillia was a bright, smiley young boy of five years old. He could count to twenty already and read a few bedtime stories to some extent. Between Lucy and Levy, the boy was destined to be a reader before any of his peers. The boy had been overjoyed to finally learn he was able to attend kindergarten, lining up his pencils and picking out his first outfit when the school year began a few months ago. Aiden had naturally fallen into routine of school and learning so well that it even surprised Lucy, her motherly heart beaming at her son's progress.

Because without his father in the picture, she would always worry over Aiden more than she should.

Of course, with Lucy and Levy both there to dote on him, Aiden grew up a sweet child, helping them out also, whenever he could manage. Lucy smiled thinking of all the times Levy allowed him to help her make meals; the young boy pulling his foot stool around in order to properly see over the counter top in order to stir or mix whatever it was aunt Levy needed done.

Pulling up to the after school care she had him enrolled in, Lucy instantly spotted her son in the distance. Although he seemed to be nothing like him, Aiden had inherited his father's head of hair: a light, delicate salmon pink.

It had been some time now that Lucy no longer felt her heart clench at the sight of her own son. Aiden's smile was very much his father's as well; cheeks pulled tight and pearly whites beaming from one end to the next. But, fortunately for Lucy, Aiden had at least inherited her warm brown eyes. But his demeanor, Lucy could never quite pin point. The boy was polite and considerate to a fault, nothing like his father who, although had been as sweet as could be with her some times, was not exactly the most gentle person Lucy knew.

Ultimately, Aiden reminded her of her mother. Although the woman had died early on in Lucy's life, she had left a heavy impact on the blonde. Distant memories of a sweet, adoring young woman who told her fairy tales before bed would float around her head as she did the very same thing with her own son years later.

Lucy shook her head, ridding herself of such thoughts as she hopped out of her car and raised her hand to wave, "Aiden!"

The boy stopped everything he was doing, his head popping up at the sound of his name. As soon as his eyes met his mother's, the pink haired boy hopped up and ran over, a smile crawling across his face, "Mommy!"

Lucy laughed as the boy collided into her legs, wrapping his tiny arms around her and squeezing tight, "Did you have a good day?"

She patted his head, untangling some small knots in his mop of hair before he looked up, "Yeah! I was just playing with Billy in the sandbox, do you wanna see what I made?"

The blonde nodded and was immediately tugged towards said sand box, his grimy hands wrapped around her wrist, "See, see!"

Lucy glanced down at what her son and his friend had conjured up. She was actually quite impressed, not knowing what she was expecting, as she stared at the lump of sand that looked like it even had a mote and a second floor. A few sticks stuck out at odd places which the blonde assumed were flags, "Wow, great job you two!"

Aiden looked up and beamed once more, exceedingly proud from his mother's appreciation, "Thanks!"

And with that, Lucy held her son's hand and gave it a squeeze, "We should get going though, hun, where's Ms. Strauss?"

"I think she's over by the swings pushing Sarah," Aiden responded, sending her hand a squeeze as they said their goodbyes to Billy and made their way to Ms. Stauss, the woman who practically single-handedly ran this after school program.

Said woman was standing just over by the older building that acted as a hangout for several students who attended the school just across the street. Parents were only required to sign up and pay a reasonable fee each month and their child or children could head over to this sanctuary until their parents arrived later on in the evening to pick them up. This place had rescued her and Levy, both of whom were unable to get time off in order to pick Aiden up immediately once school let out. Luckily, Lucy usually found herself free enough to pick him up after only an hour or so afterwards.

"Oh Lucy, glad you see you," Ms. Strauss smiled when she noticed Lucy and Aiden approaching, "I hope you're well?"

"I have been, thank you Ms. Strauss," Lucy returned the woman's warm smile.

"Mira's fine, I told you," Ms. Strauss chuckled before bending down to Aiden's level, "Why don't you go grab your things for your mother, mister?"

Aiden nodded before letting go of his mother's hand and racing off inside to gather his things. Mirajane stood, smiling at Lucy again, "He's such a sweet child."

Lucy blushed but nodded, "Yes, I honestly wouldn't know what to do with him if he wasn't so agreeable."

Mira smiled understandingly, having slowly picked up bits and pieces of Lucy's story throughout the few months the two women had known each other, "You do remember our plans this Thursday night, right? I expect the both of you at my place, 7 sharp."

Lucy gulped but forced out a laugh all the same, remembering how quickly Mira's moods could take a turn should anyone ever go against her wishes, "Of course I remember. Are you sure I don't need to bring anything though? I feel bad bringing nothing to dinner."

Mira shook her head with a frown, "I told you dear, there's no need. I love to cook so there is no trouble at all. Just make sure you and Aiden arrive on time and all is well."

Lucy smiled and thanked her just in time for Aiden to return with his backpack and jacket in tow, "Mommy, I'm ready!"

Mira laughed, "Okay, I guess I'll see you two tomorrow then! Drive safe!"

The blonde thanked her and grabbed her son's hand before crossing the street back to her car. As soon as they shut their car doors and Aiden buckled his seat belt, the boy instantly plunged into a detailed report of his day at school, "Oh and then, Mom! You should've seen it! Michael got glue stuck all over his hands and kept getting stuff stuck on him! It was so funny,"

Lucy had to chuckle at the cute laughter Aiden let out at the memory, "Oh no, was everything okay?"

Calming down, Aiden nodded, catching his mother's eye in the rear view mirror from the back seat, "Yea, Mrs. Walker wasn't happy though."

"I'm not surprised," Lucy shook her head, pulling into their parking lot, "that must've been a huge mess, huh?"

"Mhmm!"

Before Lucy even had the car in park, Aiden was already hopping out the car, "Aiden! What have I told you about taking off your seat belt while the car is still moving!"

Lucy sighed, knowing her son was no longer listening, watching as hopped up the stairs of their apartment complex and punching in the front door combination all of the inhabitants knew, before running inside. She was going to have to remind him about running the halls, too. The blonde grabbed her purse and locked the car up behind her, following Aiden into the apartment. Aiden was right where she knew he would be, standing impatiently outside their door, she chuckled to herself; he didn't exactly have a key of his own yet, "What have I said about running through the halls, Aid? Our neighbors are gonna complain again if you keep it up."

Aiden didn't look all that sorry. It was only then that she noticed his little dance and tightly squeezed legs, "Sorry but hurry mom, I really gotta go!"

Lucy laughed at that and leaned over her son, unlocking the door and kicking it open just in time for Aiden to run in, tossing his backpack and coat off before rushing towards the bathroom and slamming the door shut. No matter how mature and agreeable he appeared to be, he would always be her baby boy, Lucy thought with a smile as she grabbed his things and hung up his coat properly. Sighing, Lucy decided it was time to put together something for dinner. She still had yet to hear from Levy but assumed that if the girl was late, she would worry about her own dinner.

However, as Lucy made her way into the kitchen, she felt her phone in her back pocket begin to vibrate. The blonde wrestled it out and frowned when she saw it was a phone call from an unknown number, "Hello?" she answered cautiously.

"Hello, is this Lucy Heartfillia?" came a female voice.

"Uhh, yes, this is her."

"I wish I was calling under better circumstances, but we have you down as Ms. Levy McGarden's emergency contact," the female voice replied.

Lucy felt herself stiffened at that, "Yes, I am. Is this an emergency?"

"Well, yes and no," she paused, "I'm a nurse here at Central Hospital. She is currently stable and taken care of, but Ms. Levy McGarden was brought early this morning. I know this is all sudden, but we would much prefer—"

Lucy felt her world turn as she grabbed the countertop, feeling her legs growing weak. What happened to her friend? She was stable now but what on earth had her being brought to the hospital? Lucy could hardly stomach imagining what the petite girl would look like being pushed through the emergency room doors on a gurney.

"Ms. Heartfillia?"

"Ah, yes, sorry?"

There was a pause on the other end, "I know this is a lot to take in but we would much rather prefer talking to you in person if you are able. I'll be here the remainder of the evening so just mention your name at the front desk and they'll know where to send you."

"Uhh, yes, I have my son with me—"

"He can come as well if that's the case," the nurse replied, "I can keep him entertained while you and the doctor discuss Ms. McGarden's status."

Lucy nodded, "Okay, we'll be over shortly then, thank you."

"Thank you and I'm so sorry," then the line went dead just as Aiden came around the corner.

"Who was that, mommy?"

Lucy paused, thinking over whether or not to tell him the truth, but decided keeping this from him would probably only bite her in the butt soon enough, "That was the hospital. aunty Levy is not feeling good so she's been taken to the hospital."

Aiden's eyes widened, knowing that hospital meant it must be serious, "Is she okay? What happened to aunty?"

"Well, the nurse asked me to come and see her so the doctor can tell me," Lucy shrugged, "Do you wanna come with me?"

A mop of pink hair nodded vigorously before Aiden skirted around her to the front again, grabbing his shoes and jacket once more, "Yea, let's go!"

Despite her own worries, seeing Aiden frantically getting ready and worrying over his beloved aunty brought a small smile to her face, "Yea, let's go."

The two of them quickly entered the front doors, spotting the information desk almost instantly. Lucy grabbed Aiden's hand before they made their way, "Hello, I received a phone call from a nurse, my name is Lucy Heartfillia. I'm here to see Levy McGarden," the blonde stated as she approached the desk.

The secretary glanced up at Lucy in acknowledgement before turning back to a few files on her desk, "McGarden...McGarden...yes, right here. She'll be on the seventh floor, room 708. Doctor Richards is up there already waiting for you."

"Thank you," Lucy responded before tugging the pink haired boy along with her as they searched for an elevator. Aiden remained quiet, looking around and observing the goings on of the hospital. He rarely visited, fortunately enough, so Lucy was sure he was taking it all in.

"Is aunty gonna be okay?"

His voice was barely above a whisper but Lucy heard it all the same, she felt for than saw his true feelings. Giving his hand a gentle squeeze for comfort, she smiled down at him, "I'm sure she'll be perfectly fine. She'll be back home with us in no time."

Although Aiden returned her smile and nodded back, Lucy could tell he wasn't completely convinced; neither was she for that matter. Until she saw that happened to her dear friend, she would continue to worry. What on earth could have happened?

It wasn't long before the two of them found Levy's room. Aiden headed in first, pushing the door to her room open and holding it open for Lucy to enter behind him. The two noticed a nurse with a clipboard standing near Levy's hospital bed first, writing down numbers and checking monitors routinely.

Upon their entrance, the nurse looked up, "Oh, are you Ms. Heartfillia by any chance?"

The blonde nodded, "Yes, I'm Lucy."

The nurse nodded and walked towards the two of them, " I'll go run and grab the doctor then. She's still sound asleep but you can wait here until we return."

Lucy nodded and watched the nurse leave. Aiden squeezed his mother's hand, grabbing her attention. Glancing back towards her son, she noticed his eyes were glued to the blue haired girl lying silently on her hospital bed, sleeping contently as if nothing was wrong. But Lucy quickly ruled that thought out when she noticed the excessive amount of bandages wrapped around Levy's neck, how frail the girl looked as an IV needle stuck out from her arm and breathing tubes were hooked up to her nose. Lucy felt tears prick her eyes immediately at the sight; something terrible happened to her best friend.

She heard a sniffle. Lucy quickly looked dragged her eyes away from Levy and down to her son who was starting to tear up. Kneeling down, Lucy pulled Aiden into a hug, "What's wrong, honey?"

Sniffling, he answered, "Aunty Levy...she..."

Lucy squeezed the little boy tighter against herself, feeling a few tears dampen the skin of her shoulder, "Hey now, don't you worry," she replied, patting the boy's back comfortingly, "Aunty Levy's a strong lady. This is nothing."

"You think so?" Aiden tugged away enough to look into his mother's eyes, rubbing his hand under his nose for good measure.

"I know so."

Aiden took a moment to search his mother's eyes for any lies but eventually found none. Nodding, he tried his best to smile, "Okay."

Just then, the nurse reentered the hospital room, a doctor in tow. Lucy stood back up as the doctor came to stand before her, "Ms. Heartfillia? I'm Dr. Richards, nice to meet you." The two shook hands as the group made their way to the side of Levy's bed, "I'm glad you could make it. Basically in short, Ms. McGarden here arrived this morning via ambulance with severe bruises and cuts on most of her body. We've done our best to patch her up but the blood loss was still great enough to require a blood transfusion."

Lucy's eyes widened, "What caused all of this?"

The doctor sighed, "We have no idea. Our best guess is an animal attack with the evidence we have from her cuts. The largest, however, was on her neck. It looked like whatever it was had..." he glanced down and noted Aiden for the first time since he arrived, "Jane, do you mind?"

The nurse, supposedly Jane, nodded in understanding and went to grab Aiden's hand, "Hey hun, how about we take a quick walk and let your mother and the doctor talk a bit, okay?"

Aiden looked up at his mother for the okay and, with a nod from Lucy, he took the nurse's hand the two of them made their way out of the room, "Doctor, what happened to Levy really?"

The doctor sighed, "Believe me, ma'am, my team tried their best to put together what could've caused this but nothing really adds up. The cuts and bruises along her body seem very much human in nature. But her neck..."

"What about her neck?" Lucy glanced back down towards the bandages wrapped around her poor friend's neck.

"It was hard to tell at first, her neck was quite mangled as it was," Dr. Richards continued, "but after cleaning her up and stabilizing her enough, it seems as if they were bite marks. But they were much more animalistic than any human ever could accomplish."

Lucy felt her blood run cold. Memories of an older blonde man mangled and torn apart, strewn across her old family home's kitchen linoleum flashed across her face. Her father's dead eyes staring back at her from his disembodied head...

"Ms. Heartfillia?"

Lucy blinked back to reality, "A bite you say?"

The doctor took a deep breath and shrugs, "Like we said, our team has done its best to figure out the culprit but nothing is clear. All we know is that, yes, beyond a doubt, the wounds on her neck look very much like an animal attack. But that being said, we are investigating the source and Ms. McGarden here will make a full recovery. She responded well to the blood transfusion and should be waking up soon enough."

Lucy nodded, still recovering from long lost memories she had thought she had let go of, "Thank you, doctor."

He nodded, sending the blonde a sympathetic smile, "It's no trouble at all, I'll leave you then and your son will be back shortly. I just didn't think you'd want him listening in on this is all."

"No, I understand," Lucy returned the smile and said her goodbyes as the doctor left the room.

Her eyes immediately returned to her sleeping friend. Lucy reached for Levy's hand, taking it into hers and rubbed her thumb delicately over her knuckles. Lucy felt her blood run cold at the idea of what could have happened to Levy. She must have been absolutely terrified and Lucy had gone on with her day as if nothing was wrong. Her heart broke for her.

But remembering the doctor's words, Lucy had to wonder what the cause of all of this. Bite marks on her neck, Lucy thought. It all sounded eerily familiar and she hated it. It had been nearly five years since she and Natsu had said their goodbyes and neither of them had attempted to contact the other; or at least, Lucy knows she had never tried. She had no idea where the pink haired boy could possibly be but if her fears were confirmed, she wondered if he was closer than she originally thought. But that begged the question:

Was Natsu at fault or was there something else that went bump in the night?

A/N: IF YOU'RE READING THIS HERE, PLEASE CONTINUE ON TO MY NEW STORY. THERE WILL BE NO MORE UPDATES HERE.

I just wanted to post this first chapter here to alert everyone and send you all over to my new story. It's called Accord. The sequel some of you have been waiting for! :)