Five years later...

Heavy panting, shadowed by the many weak footsteps seemingly tapping against the ground all at once. A small, weak figure, dressed in torn, drab clothing, ran through a foreign alley, an area he knew nothing about. He was caged, almost like an animal running from his captors, finding nothing but a dead end in his way. His eyes widened in despair, the hold he had on the small loaf of bread tightening, his form turning to look over his shoulder. He fell on his rear in shock, the towering image of his pursuer becoming more intimidating by the second as the sun shining in his eyes made him difficult to make out.

"Nowhere to go now, kid." The man grinned as he approached the child, cracking his knuckles as he did so. His eyes seemed almost manic as they stared at the shivering child on the ground, his hands going around his being to protect the only source of food he had seen in weeks.

"Get away!" The child shrieked in fear when the man was close to him, kicking at his form in an attempt to make him stay back.

"You little son of a..." The man snarled when the boy managed to kick him in the face, "Now you've done it!" He shouted before raising his arm to punch the kid straight in the face; maybe that would teach him to respect his elders.

The kid gasped at the sight, his eyes focusing on the fist that was getting higher and higher above him. The older man's muscles tensed and the kid closed his eyes, waiting for the blow to come, praying for his dear life. He swung, but the damage never came.

"Oi." A rigid voice boomed from behind the man, causing him to look over his shoulder when he couldn't move his arm. His eyes widened, noticing a hooded figure standing behind him, one of his hands grasping his appendage that would have been used for violence. His eyes blurred, his form jerking to the side when a knee impacted the side of his face and sent him barreling into a wall.

"Who... the f-fuck..?" The man groaned as he tried to stand up, rubbing his face with his hand. His vision was distorted, yet was slowly getting back together. He turned to watch the newly arrival, noticing that he wore a black hoodie, the hood draped his head, black sweatpants and black sneakers. His eyes narrowed when he noticed the few strands of pink hair sticking out of the hood, thinking that the overall look of the person who was standing before him seemed... familiar.

The hooded man clicked his tongue sharply, "Times really don't change here, looks like. At first it was us, now you pick on other kids." He growled, his knees bending slightly, "Too bad we ain't like you pieces of shit!" He charged in speeds the man had trouble following. He tried swinging his fist, but the figure dodged by ducking below the appendage. Moments later something impacted his chin, lifting him off his feet slightly. The hooded man grinned and gripped the other man's midsection before swinging his entire body sideways, sending him smashing into a car which shook its entire foundations.

The kid stared in shock at the mysterious new arrival, watching in awe as he kicked at the man's stomach and later smashed his head through the car's windshield. His strength was enough to push his entire body into the car itself, but he hadn't had enough. The hooded figure grabbed the other's foot and dragged him out of the vehicle, the older man's face planting the ground below. The child had heard stories about six people who were not much older than them, but who stood up for the ones who couldn't stand up for themselves. They were a family, a family who cared for every outcast in one way or another, "Salamander..."

"P-please... sto-" He was interrupted when a foot slammed against the back of his head and made him kiss the pavement once again, his body twitching from pain.

"Stop? Like you would have stopped if I hadn't come around?" The man spoke in anger before he crouched down and grabbed the man by his collar, turning his body to be face to face with him and lifting him up into the air, "Don't make me laugh. I know your kind; you do whatever it takes to survive, even if it means beating kids and taking the last source of life from them." He growled and smashed his fist against the older man's face, sending him to the ground once again. The hooded figure sat atop the man's chest and punched him in the face multiple times, "Fucking trash." Later he got up and kicked at the guy's side, sending him rolling through the alley into an unconscious stop.

The kid cringed slightly when the hooded persona's head turned to face him, the boy's eyes meeting the man's sharp pitch black ones. The man sighed before walking towards the unconscious individual and searched through his pockets, finding a wallet moments later. He threw it to the boy and it landed near him, "Take whatever money's inside and get the hell out of here. This ain't a place you should be in, kid." He said as he stood up and leisurely strolled towards the street.

The boy stared awestruck at the man and what he did, his lips slowly twitching into a small smile, "T-thank you!" He shouted in gratefulness and the hooded man raised his hand and waved in acknowledgement before he disappeared around the corner.

Gray sighed tiredly, his form trying to relax on a quite dirty red sofa. He was in a large yet somewhat barren studio apartment; a remnant of those who were murdered here years ago. Phantom never was a forgiving place, especially to those who had even a slight amount of money. Now, however, it housed the six people who the masses believed were the heroes of the district. Hell, the whole city. The brunette always laughed at this; at first they were simply a group who looked out for each other, later kicking the ass of anyone who dared cross them. During their whole notorious fighting career, they were slowly gaining a reputation around Phantom, being called the ones who took the trash out of the district. They technically were, since the greater the reputation they got the stronger the guys that would go after them. It later escalated to entire gangs trying to kick their ass, but they made short work of them. They didn't work for the title of 'hero' that they got, but they took pride in it anyway. Any accolades achieved along the way were welcome. In the end, only one gang stood in their way, but they weren't out to conquer them. The Six let them do their own thing until they crossed them, like with every other group of douchebags that were too high and mighty for their own good.

"Oi, Gray." A voice woke the man from his musings and his somewhat irritated eyes turned to give a side glance to a certain teen. He had black hair that framed his face and slightly shadowed his crimson eyes. Zeref, or Zee, was the kid that saved them from Dan all those years ago, "Where's Natsu?"

They never did really know much about Zee's past or where he was coming from; all they knew was that he was brought up on his own. That was the only piece of information he shared with them, and they didn't pry further. They knew that not everyone's past was easy to talk about, so they let them speak about it whenever they wanted to. Zee had merged with the group quite well; even though he was a quiet guy who preferred action over conversation, he never once did anything against any member of their group. On the contrary - he only helped. His goals seemed to cohere with the others' and he was a kid who needed help surviving. That was the only thing either Natsu or Gray needed to know and Zee was instantly welcomed into the group. All of them grew as family and proceeded to do things their own way, not letting any douchebags stand in their way, hence their reputation.

"He should be on his way here now. Why?" Gray questioned through narrowed eyes. He didn't have a personal problem with Zee; it's just that... he found him somewhat weird. Zee always was close to Natsu and always by his side when they fought. That would seem natural, but he thought Zee was encouraging the pinkette to get more violent every time they fought. He was always the one to start the fight whenever Natsu was around them, but when he wasn't the black haired teen would simply stand idly by until someone else started it, as if he wasn't interested or something. That always managed to catch Gray's eye, but he never really paid attention. Maybe he should? He didn't know and he didn't necessarily care.

"Just asking." The red-eyed teen replied with a simple shrug. Suddenly, they heard the door to the studio apartment creak open and turned to glance at who had returned, noticing the cigarette in the individual's mouth instantly. He was dressed in black clothes with a hood over his head which he slowly removed to reveal his features. He had short and spiky pink hair which covered some of his sharp features and pitch black onyx eyes.

He sighed, exhaling smoke as he did so, before his eyes met those of Gray's and Zee's, "I'm back."

"What took so long?" Gray questioned as Natsu walked to sit next to him, patting the cigarette in between his fingers with his thumb to drop the leftover ash into the ashtray.

"Some retard was having too much fun, had to bust his balls a bit." He replied as he left what was left of his cigarette in the ashtray and leaned back into the sofa, folding his arms behind his head, "So, what's up? Where's everyone else? I mean, you called all of us here for a reason, right?"

Fullbuster nodded at the question, glancing at Zee who was leaning against a pillar, his hands folded beneath his chest and eyes closed, "Let's wait for the rest first. I really don't want to go over this two times."

"Fair enough." Natsu said. The three of them waited for twenty or so more minutes before three people entered the apartment. One had black hair combined with white, another was blond, and the last one had red hair. Natsu smiled at the sight of their friends and they returned the greeting in full.

"Well? Why the meeting?" Midnight questioned as all three of them sat on the sofa opposite to Natsu's and Gray's, Cobra and Zancrow nodding at the question as well.

"The Shades. They're moving again." Gray stated, followed by a loud groan of annoyance from Natsu, "Natsu, you can't ignore them much lo-"

"Yes I can and we will." The pinkette replied angrily, his eyes closed and brows furrowed, "We don't go to war with them until they become stupid enough to cross us. I thought I made that perfectly clear."

"But they did cross us!" Zeref replied in protest, "They've attacked one of the gangs that have allied under us."

"Allied under us... Hah. They never attacked us directly!" Natsu argued, his tone silencing the black haired teen, "Look, I thought we went over this already. We are not like those pieces of shit that are plaguing the streets. We are not a fucking gang!" He said while slamming his fist on the table, "They want to ally under us and be under the illusion that we lead them? Fine. Makes it easier to keep them in check. Are they a part of us? No. We are The Six. No one else. Those guys can go fuck themselves for all I care. We're not controlling anyone." He sighed and leaned back into his sofa, "Besides, this whole allying thing is just a farce so no one goes against them. Our name brings fear to assholes all around, so they use it. I don't care much for that. But if they start being a problem - we'll move against them. Show them just how much we value their alliance."

"I agree with Natsu on this." Cobra said with a nod of his head.

"You always agree with him." Zancrow voiced with a roll of his eyes, being elbowed by the redhead later, "Oi."

"Those fags that are 'allied' under us are the guys we've served a beatdown breakfast to in the past. Why the hell should we care about them?" He said while lighting a cigarette and inhaling.

"Because of that very reason." Midnight said while rubbing his forehead. This type of conversation was getting tedious real fast. What happened to the days where all you had to do was punch someone in the face to get the message across?

"Exactly." Gray agreed, "Those gangs are now under us for the sole reason that we kicked their asses. What's to stop them from allying under Jose if they beat them down? It'll positively increase the chances of him jumping us!"

"Positive?" Natsu laughed at this, "The only positive thing about that jackass is his HIV status. Fucker can't even stick his dick into something without catching a testicle-rotting disease." He breathed out in annoyance of the whole situation, ignoring the few sighs and chuckles that reverberated through the room. He slowly stood up and made for the door, "Look, we're not doing shit until we need to. That's final." He said with a tone of finality before exiting the apartment, slamming the door shut behind him.

Gray huffed in irritation, "Why does he have to be so fucking stubborn?" He mused to himself rather angrily.

"That's Natsu for you. What can you do?" Midnight questioned tiredly, leaning back on the sofa, Cobra agreeing with a nod and a quiet 'yup' all the while.

Zancrow stood up from his seat and made for the second floor, "We'll just have to follow what he says, I guess. I'm gonna go catch some zs."

As all of them debated what to do next, Zee was practically fuming inside. Why had Natsu become so weak? Why was he turning out to be such a pansy? He was so fun to be around with when it all started; the brutality, his merciless nature, his anger and resentment. Everything was just so exciting to exploit and observe. The pinkette was like his own personal experiment, but now he's changed, gone soft. No, this wouldn't stand. He'd have to change it, even if he'd have to do something drastic.

He spun on his heel and made for the door, "I need some air." He voiced aloud and simply left without waiting for confirmation from anyone. Grinning to himself while outside, he grasped at his own shirt, his eyes maddeningly wide "Wait for me, Natsu... I'll get the old you back." The dark haired teen chuckled darkly before turning to walk to a specific area of Phantom; a place where he knew a few of the gangs that were following them had their usual hangouts.

Natsu stepped through the western side of Magnolia after around two hours of walking, having already passed the boundary that separated the two districts. He always viewed the wall as a disgusting result of human ego; the richer people who voted for the building of the thing made his stomach churn in resentment. Who in their right minds would forsake another human being just because of their social status? That's how this whole problem started in the first place! Had they put time and effort into renovating the city and putting the outlaws under lock and key the whole city itself would be in a better situation than it had ever been.

But it was never that simple, was it?

He sighed as he thought this, draping his hood loosely over his head and shoving his hands into his pants' pockets. The pinkette thought back on what Gray had said, snorting indignantly when he wondered why the hell the guy had thought disturbing his time for something as insignificant as Shade was even worth it. He had plans made for this evening already and he had to postpone them just so he could hear something as stupid as that.

Shaking his head to get his thoughts out of the gutter, he turned a corner. His lips twitched into a small smile when he saw a familiar mop of short white hair. Her back was turned and Natsu couldn't help but grin at the opportunity. Carefully prowling towards her, the pinkette lunged at the woman from behind and embraced her, kissing the back of her head all the while.

"Hey." Lisanna chuckled as her fingers intertwined with his, "You're late." She spoke through a smile, turning around later. Her deep blue eyes gazed at his onyx ones, a friendly smile plastered on her features.

"Sorry, had some stuff to take care of." He smiled back before leaning forward. She met him halfway and kissed him passionately.

Leaning back, a certain thought crossed her mind and she frowned, "You were at Phantom again, weren't you?" She questioned him, his eyes narrowing slightly before he sighed in an all-too-tired fashion.

"Yeah." He replied and, before she could protest, he spoke again, "You know I can't leave those guys alone, Lisanna. We're a family. I have to be there... And if not for them then for the assholes living there."

"I know, I know... but still, I don't have to like it." Lisanna said, sounding rather unsure of herself, and Natsu simply nodded in understanding.

"Don't worry, I get it." Then he smiled when a certain event of today crossed his mind, "I saved a kid today though." He said and she stared quizzically at him.

"What do you mean?" She inquired and Natsu simply smiled at her.

'No matter what she says, she always wants to hear anything child-related, huh...?' He thought with an inward chuckle before starting to explain the start of his day when he had just entered Phantom. He explained every single detail; how the guy was going for the kid carrying a loaf of bread, how he was going to steal it and beat the kid up. He left the part of kicking the guy's ass to a bare minimum, but he did explain how he stole his money and gave it to the kid so he could fend for himself, even if only for a few days.

Her face twisted into one of disgust, "How can someone attack a child like that...? It's unbelievable." She said and Natsu shrugged at the question.

"I don't condone it, but I do get where he's coming from." He spoke, "To survive you gotta do what you gotta do. And, in Phantom, survival is the most important thing. Hell, what I've seen while being there makes me think those people aren't even human; just mindless beasts doing whatever they can to see another sunrise." He spoke, mirth evident in his voice.

She thought deeply about this, understanding the meaning behind his statement, yet shook her head all the while to expel those thoughts, "Well, I'm just glad that you're okay, hero." She chuckled and Natsu could only roll his eyes at the comment.

"Yeah, right, hero." He said with sarcasm dripping from his voice before leaning closer, resting his head against her shoulder, "I missed you though. Dealing with that place is... tiring." He huffed quietly before the woman grabbed his shoulders and pushed him back so she could stare him in the eyes.

"Why don't you stop going there then?" She asked and the pinkette's lips pursed slightly at the question.

"Lisanna, we've been over this." He paused, "You know I want to leave that place for good. I really do. But I can't. It's not my choice anymore. Even if I don't want to admit it, what we've created is only causing good. You've heard what people have been talking, right? I'm sure it's all over west right about now. How there's a group of bandits going around kicking the asses of the gangs around Phantom?" She nodded at this, accepting his statement even if she didn't want to.

Even if she couldn't bear the thought of admitting it, Lisanna knew that what Natsu and the others from The Six were doing was only having a positive effect on the whole district. They have taken care of most of the gangs around the eastern side of the city, leaving them in their place, in fear of the Six Demons coming in and breaking them yet again.

"That's why I can't leave." He said, smiling afterwards, "Besides, returning home after a tough day at work is that much better." He said and closed the distance between them, both of them smiling into the exchange of emotion.

The couple broke the kiss after a few moments, smiling at one another all the while, "Should we get going?" He asked and she quirked an eyebrow at his question.

"...Where?" The white haired girl asked curiously, wondering what the pink haired teen had in mind.

"There's a movie showing in a few moments. We might still make it." He said before taking his phone out of his pocket to glance at the time, "Yup, thirty minutes till it starts. We'll make it."

Lisanna chuckled slightly at him, "Okay, Mr. Organized, let's go then. Lead the way." She said as she took his hand and he nodded, starting to go in the cinema's direction afterwards.

They walked for around ten minutes, talking about random things all the while. They've known each other for over half a year now, four months of which they had spent together as a couple. He didn't know whether or not they were moving too fast, but he had fallen in love with her a few weeks after they became official. He figured it was the same for her. In some sense, she was an escape for him. She was that one person who always waited for him, no matter the shit he did or had to go through. Whatever it was, she was always there to comfort him, to make things easier whenever something didn't go according to plan and ended up in disaster.

Whenever he thought about this, he always berated himself for it. Was she truly just an escape for him? Just a means to make his daily life easier? Or was he just something that she wanted to maintain? Just a broken tool that she just couldn't let go of without trying to fix? Whichever the case was, he truthfully didn't care. He was happy, she was happy; that was all that mattered to either of them.

As they walked, it had suddenly started raining, forcing them to take to cover, "Fuck's sake, it was sunny just a while ago!" Natsu shouted in protest as both of them ran into a bus stop, panting slightly above the glass roof, "Great, now we're soaked." He said in irritation while Lisanna only laughed at his comment.

"We'll be fine, don't worry." She stated, glancing up at the sky which was greyed out by rather dreary rainclouds, "Doesn't look like it'll end any time soon. Should we wait or should we just go to the cinema?" She asked, glancing at Natsu for an answer.

"I guess we should just go. We don't have the time to wait, after all." He said and she nodded before both of them went into a stride again. While running, Natsu quickly took off his hoodie and draped it over her head, shaking his head to quell any protests the girl had and motioning for her to run forward.

Would it have been any different if he had chosen to wait rather than move forward? Or would it have been the same? Maybe he never would've found them. Maybe that car would have never passed right through the intersection and noticed them.

But when it did, it was instantaneous.

Natsu felt his body jerk as Lisanna's form embraced him.

"NATSU!" Her scream was all he heard.

Everything had died down. Every sound he heard had disappeared. Everything he felt had left him.

Just three identical sounds.

Bang.

Bang.

Bang.

He fell to the ground, feeling unprepared to hold Lisanna's weight. His form impacted the street's surface, his wide eyes focusing on the driver of the car who closed up his tinted window.

Jose.

Then Natsu felt it. The warmth flowing onto his stomach. He raised his hand, shivering when he saw the crimson liquid stuck in between his fingers. Lisanna's body twitched on top of him, making him glance down towards her. Her blue eyes met his eyes, the rain flowing down her cheeks mixing with her tears. He screamed her name, lifting her up and embracing her as he sat up. He continued screaming her name, waiting for some form of answer from her.

It was sickeningly silent. He heard nothing and felt nothing besides the warm and foreign blood covering him. He stared into her eyes, his own tears overflowing.

Her hand touched his cheek, caressing it gently.

Her mouth moved, speaking words Natsu couldn't discern. It was as if he didn't hear them at all. As if the whole world had closed in on him, showing him how truly merciless it was.

She smiled; her eyes closed forever.

And his home was wiped off of the face of the earth in the blink of an eye.

"LISANNA!"