Akemi's family was different.

He was used to different.

Natsu Dragneel, his father, had a speech problem. He would stutter once or twice when he spoke. If he stuttered more than that, he was worried or stressed.

Lucy Dragneel, his mother, couldn't walk and had to sit in a wheelchair.

Albeit, that wasn't the difference in Akemi's eyes. In fact, it never really bothered him, because he grew up with these conditions. Point is, there were other factors that made his family different.

In one quick glance, they would look like an odd family. He knew he was adopted, but people didn't know that. The three looked nothing alike. You'd think, after knowing that he was adopted, it would make them seem less conspicuous and judged. However, that wasn't the case.

His father had pink hair. His mother was quite beautiful. That being said, it wasn't too rare to see someone with blonde hair, but she stuck out with her beauty. As for him, he apparently had a rare eye-colour too; a shade of blue that almost resembled turquoise.

Their neighborhood obviously found their family weird, so they kept their distance. They never talked to them or included them in the neighborhood activities. That was four years ago when they first moved into their own house and a little bit after Akemi was adopted. But with the warm personality of both Dragneels and Natsu's extroverted self - despite the stuttering - the people warmed up pretty quickly.

Although, with all that in mind, that still wasn't the half of what made Akemi's family so different. No, it sure wasn't.

Akemi finished his homework and stood up to stretch his legs. "Oh, you're done?" He peered out the slightly open door to see a pink haired lady dressed in a maid uniform. Her lifeless eyes staring striaght into his. He opened the door fully. "Yes, I am. What are you doing here, Miss Virgo?"

"Princess needed some assistance with the groceries, so I came to help," she answered. This caught Akemi's attention. "So dad is training then?" He questioned. Akemi knew it was most likely the case. His dad would help any time possible, so he was certain that his father was training. It was the only thing Natsu Dragneel done that kept him busy - besides his job.

"It seems so," Virgo answered, turning away, "Now, I must get these to the kitchen. Would you like to accompany me, little Akemi?"

The boy nodded and hid the irritation he felt by that nickname. He only mentally vowed to make Loki pay for teaching Virgo that horrid nickame just to tease him. And as for why Virgo called his mother 'princess', he nor Lucy knew why. At least he wasn't called 'prince' or 'young master'. Thank goodness for that.

He took a bag from Virgo's hand without a word and followed her to the kitchen. As he entered, he saw his mother sorting through some groceries placed on her lap. He made another mental note to call his father to help her pack the groceries away.

Akemi witnessed the softening of his mothers eyes and from that sight, it was all he needed to see to know his mother smiled. His mother's smile brought a sense of warmth.

"I finished my homework." He tried reaching for the table, but it only resulted in Virgo lifting him up. He put the bag down - not without groaning. He scowled with crossed arms as the maid placed him back on the ground. Yet, at his mother's chuckle, his scowl was reduced to a pout.

"Thank you, Miss Virgo," Akemi mumbled. She nodded with a small smile. "You're welcome," she said, "I will take my leave now. Goodbye princess and little Akemi."

She bowed and then, it happened. The lady dressed in a maid outfit dissapeared, leaving small, colorful, glitter as a fire would leave soot. She faded away and soon, those rainbows of glitter faded as well. Akemi always found it beautiful in its own way. It amazed him everytime he saw his mother's ability. Though, he wished after a time of observing, he had an abilty like his mother's. Unfortunately, Lucy had never known how she was able to summon her friends, so he was never able to learn.

On the other hand, Akemi was able to learn something else.

"Are you going to join your dad?" Lucy asked.

"Yes. I'll tell dad that the groceries are here."

With that, Akemi jogged to their yard where his father, Natsu Dragneel, resided. His father trained in his free time in the yard. Specifically, he was training his body and combat skills for reasons unknown to Akemi. Maybe it was the fact that he needed to utilize that 'super human strength for a family-guy' as his work-friends say.

For Akemi, it was just natural. He'd trained with his father and keep up to some extent. It was an impressive thing to be able to do, because his father had unbelievable animal senses and instincts.

Having a family that was heavily involved in these abnormal normalities, it was only natural that Akemi learned how to defend himself. The way he handled those bullies was enough proof of the skills he picked up training with his father.

The brunet toddler watched as his father ignited a fierce flame out of nothing. His hand surrounded by that fire, growing and glowing brilliantly. It moved across the yard in different directions, but never died out. It was a sight to admire, but Akemi always loved his mother's ability better.

It was beautiful.

As his name suggests - beauty in the dawn - he was a boy who admired the beauty in the ethereal effect of light in it's different shades of orange. His father's fire reminded him of that and his mother's reached a beauty beyond the dawn. Yet, it was ethereal to him either way and was the definition of it too.

Too bad he wasn't able to use this magical mystery powers.

Natsu stopped training once he caught eye of his son. "Oh, hey! Finished your homework?" The man grinned. His hands on his hips and arms akimbo.

"Yes. It was easy and boring." He would imagine Kazui was enjoying that kindergarden homework. "I really can't with school. Terrible I tell ya'!" Natsu reckoned jokingly with a chuckle. He meant it though. "Want to spar since your done?"

Akemi nodded and pointed his thumb towards the house, "Mom came back with the groceries though."

"Oh, really? Then we can have a small match after I help your mom, 'kay?"

Once again, Akemi nodded. The words had never left from his lips.

Yup, his family was different.

➵

One thing was a constant in Karakura Town: unnatural disaster that was claimed 'natural disaster'. These disasters made huge messes like huge dents in the paved streets. There was earthquakes in specific areas that conveniently had less people and even lesser fatal injuries. Another thing was explosions and some claiming to have heard an unsettling roar.

Walking amongst them at night wasn't a wise idea either, but he was curious. And how did this mess start? Well, his first mistake was listening to them.

His spar with his father was intense as usual. The man never knew how to hold back and that was probably the reason why Akemi was so brutal when it came to fighting.

Overall, the day went smoothly and the fact that it was Friday gave Akemi an excuse to stay up a little longer. Only a little. His mother bidded him goodnight. Following after, his pink haired father came to greet him too. "Night, Akemi."

"Good night, dad."

It was supposed to end there. He would fall asleep and the week would go nicely. He would spend time with his mother and maybe go out somewhere with his family. Or it would be a busy day for his mom and her sit-in job. Nontheless, they would still find a way to spend some time with each other. But it wasn't meant to be.

His night went wrong, which started with the thoughts of his parent's abilities. He always wished for an ability like his father's or mother's. It was fun to watch too. A beautiful sight and a fierce ignition of orange and red shades mixed together constantly clashing. He wanted an ability like that more for his satisfaction than showing off.

Akemi was never able to have such powers. Maybe it was caused by the inability to learn or lack of knowledge on the origins of their abilities. Maybe that was it.

Or maybe... it was something else.

His blue eyes roamed around the darkened room. His eyes showed clear exhaustion and boredom.

"Hey, hey."

The small child sighed, deciding he couldn't sleep.

"Hey, hey."

He sat up and glared at the space in front of him. "What?" He whispered harshly. Nothingness turned into something. Something appeared in the darkness and became vivid like a embarrassing memory you couldn't forget. There floated a man.

A ghost.

"You can see me, right? I knew it!" The ghost perked up. Akemi failed to answer the man's question or rather, didn't feel like it. "Did you want to haunt me or do you just want attention?" The boy wasn't pleased.

This ghost had been trying to get him to respond for weeks. Akemi had a temper when provoked the right way and this spirit-thing hit the nail. It frustrated him to no end! He couldn't live it down once the ghost started following everywhere - everywhere he went.

"Oh, no. It actually works out for both of us if you listen," he answered with a lop-sided smile. "What do you mean?" Akemi mumbled, not interested in the slightest.

The ghost knew that would change.

"Don't you want to know why you can see ghosts? Don't you want to know more about yourself and your kind?" And indeed, he struck gold.

Akemi narrowed his eyes. "What?"

The ghost got his undivided attention, yet, he was suspicious. How would he  know about those things? Because his a ghost or something? He thought. "There's a reason why you can see us: the deceased. I can show you. I can lead you."

The concept of a five year old being persuaded by a different worldly being wasn't impossible. In fact, with the right cards, it was easy. It would have been easy leading them on with their desires. Akemi was a different case. On any other circumstances, he wouldn't be swayed. However, he was being offered an answer to a question he had for years in his short time on earth.

The blue-eyed boy was different. He had a unique personality for his age. He was mature - a different case. Yes, that was all true. There was no arguments there. Although, the topic of his questions was a different case as well. So, at the very least, Akemi was remotely interested. "Where do plan to 'lead' me?" He questioned.

"To someone who can tell you more about yourself."

Akemi tried not to react, but - as flawless as his blank-expression was - the lingering soul knew better. He smiled smugly. "Follow me," he simply said. The ghost proceeded to float through the closed window and then waved.

It was his choice now. What was he going to do? He couldn't just leave, could he?

Mom. Dad. His reminiscing circled around his parents and their individual predicaments. Unsure plastered on his face, he glanced at the door. It was as if he was waiting for an answer. Should I take this chance? It could help me know about mom and dad's powers. It might help them too.

Akemi had his answer.

These so-called people... maybe they know something about our abilities. He peered out the window hidden by the curtains. His lips tightened and eyebrows furrowed. Determined and feeling bold, he got up. I can take this chance.

He had to do something. His parents couldn't hide their problems in their little house. He knew everything. Kazui was his own personal spy, so the information he got was the information Akemi had. Thus, he knew about his mother's visits to the hospital. He didn't know why though. Kazui couldn't get that bit of info.

The pale brunet was observant too, so he didn't miss the times his father would purposely ignore his speech-therapist's calls.

Don't think he missed the things that were absent. For one thing, his parents couldn't remember where they got their powers from or when. They don't recall a lot of things too, even till this day.

Perhaps, he could do this one thing for them: he could find out his parent's roots. Albeit, Akemi had to admit part of him was curious about his origins too.

Quickly, Akemi grabbed a light-cream, two-button, cardigan and put on his matching shoes. He made sure to walk quietly towards the window and slowly slide it open. The night-breeze was cold, but he didn't mind. He had taken a liking to the cold weather. Breathing in, the cold scents of the night filled his nose.

Oddly enough, it made something inside of him spiral. Was it some kind of adrenalin? He could probably use that word to describe that feeling, but he wasn't sure. Whatever it was, it gave him the courage to jump out of the window with agility. He landed softly on the ground.

The boy was thankful for all the training with his father. The man had remarkable senses from scent-to-touch, which made him impossible to sneak up on!

"Glad you decided to follow me." The voice brought him back to the reality of his actions.

Akemi scowled. "Be quiet and just show me the way."

"Rude."