Chapter One

The system is corrupt.

Everyone thought the concept of soulmates was magical. That they could bring happiness to anyone on the planet. That there was someone, anyone out there that was your perfect, other half.

But this isn't a story of destiny and fate. No, this is the story of souls rekindling, finding love after year after year of loss.

- - - -

No one knows how the world of eye color changing exactly came up in history. Common myths say it has to do with adaptation, like that of chameleons. Biology explains it's just another biological process of emotion. But it's commonly accepted that it's simply a representation of your love for another. That your souls are forever intertwined, and you both know it.

Except, you don't know for sure until you fall in love.

You're born with grey eyes and color vision. When you meet your soulmate, your eye color changes, and everyone can see it except you. When you fall in love, you finally see the color yourself. If you fall out of love, your eyes go back to grey, and you can never have color vision again.

His mother was one of those unfortunate souls who broke up with her soulmate, on a stormy night when Natsu was four years old. From that day on, his mother, Grandine, distracted herself with other things, filling in the gaps of lost love and black-and-white vision with her children and her job.

Natsu knew she wasn't happy, and that she never could be the same again. His sister, Wendy, who was born blind, would forever have grey eyes because she could never lay eyes on her soulmate. Since then, he vowed to hate the color grey forever, because it constantly reminded him of how twisted and destructive love really is.

And yet somehow, Natsu found himself disgustingly fascinated with staring at himself in the mirror. Blinking his eyes over and over, wishing his eyes would change color, that the world didn't torture everyone with the race to find love just for the sake of having colored eyes.

Standing in front of the bathroom mirror, Natsu closed his eyes, whispering the same hopeless prayer he said every day. He wished for his mom to be happy again. For Wendy to see the world. To go back home.

"Natsu!" His mom interrupted him from his moment of silence. "Breakfast!"

Natsu's eyes fluttered open again. He saw them beyond the chunky rims of his glasses. Nope, he thought, not surprised, yet still disappointed. Still grey.

Sighing, he threaded his fingers through his hair and moved out of the bathroom. He picked up his backpack, which was already packed and sitting on the chair in his bedroom where he left it last night. It was the same backpack he used last year, a simple black one, decorated with various shiny pins. In the other hand, he scooped up his clarinet case.

When he headed downstairs, Natsu found his sister curled over a plate of eggs and toast. Natsu took a seat beside her, grabbing a banana out of the fruit bowl in the center of the table. "Good morning," He greeted Wendy. "You didn't attempt to cook that yourself, did you?" He peeled the banana and took a bite.

"Ha, ha. You're just jealous that I'm a better cook than you," Even with her dark sunglasses covering half of her face, Natsu still saw the my-brother-is-an-idiot expression etched on Wendy's features.

"Please tell me that I can have eggs that are not cooked by the girl that can't even see the stove," Natsu called out to his mom, whose back was turned to him as she flipped pancakes.

"Just because she can't see doesn't mean that she can't whip up a mean plate of scrambled eggs," Mom countered, though beyond her strict comeback Natsu heard amusement in her voice. It was always like this at the kitchen table; back-and-forth banter between the three of them that meant nothing.

Mom brought over a plate with a stack of pancakes in one hand and a bottle of maple syrup in the other. "Special first day pancakes!" She announced happily, setting the plate and bottle on the table. "Eat up."

Natsu dove for the plate, grabbing the entire stack. He was about to drown his pancakes in syrup when Wendy cleared her throat.

"Oh, I'm sorry, did you want some?" Natsu asked innocently, batting his eyelashes. Wendy's lips pursed in annoyance. Chuckling lightly at her expression, Natsu took two of the pancakes and dropped them on her plate. "There you go, princess."

The rest of breakfast was spent the same way it was every morning; Wendy and Natsu arguing, with Mom being the mediator between them. "You kids will be the death of me," She said as she shoved them out the door once she had enough of their bickering. "Don't forget to buy lunch."

Natsu barely managed to grab his keys off the counter before she slammed the back door in their face. Natsu waited patiently for Wendy to feel her way around the car and plop into the passenger seat before getting in the car himself. The engine revved as Natsu started the ignition and took off down the driveway. He reached for the radio dial and spun it until they found a song both Wendy and he agreed on.

"Are you nervous?" Natsu asked her half-teasingly.

She clutched her walking stick tighter. "No," She said firmly. Natsu knew she was lying; whereas people could read emotions through the eyes, he picked up on the smallest visual cues from his sister. Her knuckles were turning white with her death grip on the stick; perhaps she was trying to convince herself more than him.

"Hey," Natsu patted her hands while keeping his eyes on the road. "You'll be fine. Remember, you're going to public school because you want to live a normal life? This is what you wanted."

"I just hope it's not too late to change my mind," Wendy muttered in a low voice.

Natsu signaled left and pulled into the campus of their new high school, Magnolia High. "Well, if all else fails, I've got your back."

Wendy, who skipped kindergarten and just turned fourteen last month, was going into the school as a freshman. She had it easier; because the three middle schools of the area pooled into the one giant high school, there were plenty of lost freshmen looking to make friends. On the other hand, Natsu would have a bigger problem making friends as a senior, who had already formed their cliques.

Natsu thought the entire move was dumb. Why would Mom pack them up and move halfway across Japan the summer before his last year of high school? Why can't you just let me finish the year here? Natsu had begged, but there was nowhere for him to stay. Because she got a once-in-a-lifetime job offer she couldn't pass up, they had packed everything up and were gone within a month.

Wendy leaned her head against the window. "That's not reassuring."

Natsu rolled my eyes, pulling into the school. "Shut up." He drove around, following the sign that pointed to student parking. Because they were here early, they managed to find an empty spot. "We're here," Natsu announced, taking the keys out of the ignition. "You ready for the first day?"

A dry sigh passed by her lips. "As I'll ever be."

She fumbled for the door handle and let herself out, leaning against the door of the old Civic as she waited for Natsu to join her. Natsu, tucking his keys into a backpack pocket and slinging it over one shoulder, walked around the hood of the car to link his arm with hers.

It was simple enough to find the main office; it was - thankfully - located in the front of the school. Natsu and Wendy had to wait for the secretary to find their information and print out their schedules. Natsu drummed his fingers nervously on his clarinet case, feeling anxious as the printer whirred. His eyes kept flickering to Wendy, checking to see if she was alright. She sat motionless, hands folded tightly in her lap and looking straight ahead.

Upon receiving his schedule, Natsu stared at the number of advanced courses he had. Lovely, he thought. Well, at least he had band class, the only class he looked forward to, at the end of the day.

Wendy shoved her schedule into his lap. "Read it aloud," She demanded. After a moment, she decided to add a soft "Please."

Natsu waited for her to pull out her high-tech phone, built specifically for the visually impaired. It had Braille keys and several additions to facilitate life, such as buttons for call, text, email, and voice recordings. A small beep emitted from her phone, and Natsu read out the list.

This was nothing new to him. Clearing his throat, he read: "First period is geometry in room 106, second is French III in room 139, third is study hall in room 53, fourth is world geography in room 181, then lunch, fifth is Japanese I in 189, sixth is physical education in the gym, and lastly, seventh is biology. Room 100."

Wendy clicked the button to terminate the recording and took the paper from him again. "Thank you," She folded up the paper and tucked it into her pocket.

"You sure you're going to be alright?" Natsu checked one last time. He'd never admit it, but secretly he was scared for his sister to venture off in the new school alone blindly. Literally. At least before she went to a private middle school for the visually impaired. But now, Natsu thought worriedly. Anything could happen.

It was safe to say that Natsu did not like surprises. Or change. Or the idea that the real world would eventually come down and suffocate his only sister.

"I'm fine, Natsu," Wendy assured him. "I have a feeling this is going to be a good year for both of us."

And as they parted ways and Natsu watched her tap her way down the hall, Natsu prayed that she was right, otherwise he wouldn't know what to do with himself. 

A/N: Sorry I'm being really slow on updates - school is ending and I'm scrambling to finish projects, final exams, and I'm running for student government... Life has been quite hectic lately. Anywho, please give me feedback! What do you guys think of this story? Natsu? Wendy? Grandine? Don't forget to vote and comment!! Thank you, ilysm!!