Chapter 1: Salamander..
The morning sun cast a warm, golden glow over the pavement leading to Musutafu Elementary School, but for the students whispering near the gates, the heat seemed to be coming from somewhere else entirely.
Among the sea of children shuffling along in their uniforms, one boy stood out like a lit flare in a dark room. He had spiky, unruly pink hair that defied gravity and sharp, onyx eyes that seemed to dance with perpetual energy. He walked with a bounce in his step, his yellow backpack slung casually over one shoulder, his white sneakers kicking up dust as he grinned at the world. He wore the standard school shorts and a loose t-shirt, looking completely at ease.
However, the atmosphere around him was thick with tension.
"Hey, look," a boy whispered to his friend, nudging him with an elbow. "That's him."
"The Salamander?" the friend replied, eyes widening. "Is he really a lizard in disguise?"
"Dude, haven't you heard what the kids from class 6-B say?" Another student chimed in, keeping his voice low. "They say he eats fire. Like, actual fire."
"That sounds fictional to me," the friend scoffed, adjusting his glasses. "There's no way that's scientifically possible without burning his insides. Quirk or not, physiology has limits."
"You're way too relaxed about this," the first boy hissed, pulling his friend back as the pink-haired boy walked past them. "If he eats fire, there's no guarantee he won't eat a person. Just stay away from him, man. Believe the rumors. He's dangerous."
Unaware—or perhaps simply uncaring—of the hushed conversations trailing in his wake, Natsu Dragneel arrived at his classroom door. He didn't just open it; he announced his arrival.
SLAM!
Natsu slid the door to the side with enough force to make the frame rattle. He stepped inside, throwing his free hand up in a peace sign, his grin blindingly bright.
"Yo, guys!!" he shouted, his voice booming across the room. "How are we doing today?!"
The reaction was instantaneous. And heartbreakingly silent.
The chatter that had filled the room seconds ago vanished. Dozens of pairs of eyes turned toward him—hesitant, wide, and filled with a mixture of confusion and genuine wariness. A girl in the front row flinched. A boy near the back quickly looked down at his desk, pretending to read.
Natsu stood there, his hand still in the air, blinking. The silence stretched awkwardly. He lowered his hand slowly, tilting his head.
"Huh?" Natsu looked around, genuinely puzzled. "What's wrong with you guys? You all look so... down."
From the heavy silence, a playful, somewhat exasperated voice cut through.
"They aren't 'down', Natsu. They're terrified."
Natsu blinked again and looked to the side. Sitting on a desk nearby was a girl who looked as unique as he did, perhaps even more so. She had bright pink skin, curly pink hair, and two small yellow horns protruding from her head. Her eyes were black with yellow irises, and she swung her legs back and forth with a carefree rhythm.
It was Mina Ashido, his classmate.
"Mina?" Natsu frowned, clenching his fists as he scanned the room protectively. "What do you mean? Who's the jerk scaring my classmates? Point him out! I'll burn him to a crisp... uh, I mean, I'll beat him up!"
Mina burst into laughter, hopping off the desk. She walked up to him, shaking her head with a smile. She raised her index finger and pointed directly at Natsu's chest.
"The person my finger is pointing at," she teased.
Natsu's eyes widened. He immediately spun around, looking frantically at the empty hallway behind him.
"Is he behind me?!" Natsu shouted, getting into a fighting stance. "Where is he?!"
Inside the classroom, a collective groan echoed as twenty students simultaneously slapped their foreheads. The sound of face-palming was louder than the bell.
Mina giggled, the sound light and airy. "You really are hopeless, aren't you?" She reached out, her pink hand gripping his wrist gently. "Come on. Walk with me for a bit."
"Hey, wait!" Natsu protested as she began to drag him away from the door. "Where are we going? Class is about to start!"
As Mina pulled him out of the classroom and down the corridor, Natsu's sensitive ears picked up the exhales of relief from inside the room.
"Finally..." one boy muttered. "Birds of a feather flock together."
"Seriously," a girl's voice whispered, dripping with disdain. "Why do I have to be in the same class as those two? It's unnerving."
"I'm going to ask my dad to talk to the principal," another voice added. "I want to transfer to a different class. Being around monsters is too much pressure."
Natsu froze. His feet planted firmly on the floor, stopping Mina's tug. He stared at the closed door, his eyebrows knitting together in sudden irritation.
"Do they have a problem or something?!" Natsu growled, turning back toward the door. "I'm gonna go ask them what their deal is!"
"Natsu, don't," Mina said firmly, stepping in front of him. She placed her hands on his shoulders, preventing him from storming back in. "Just... accompany me. Please?"
Her voice was softer now, lacking its usual bounce. Natsu looked at her, seeing a flash of something sad in her unique eyes. He huffed, crossing his arms, but nodded. "Fine."
They walked in silence until they reached a quiet alcove in the hallway, where large glass windows overlooked the busy street below. The cars looked like toys from up here, and the pedestrians were mere specks.
Mina leaned against the windowsill, looking at her reflection in the glass—her horns, her skin.
"Listen, Natsu," she began, not looking at him. "The students here... they aren't used to people like us. Mutant-types. Or people with quirks that seem scary." She tapped her horn. "I look like something out of a spooky story to them. And you... well, the rumors about you eating fire freak them out. You don't look like a monster, but you have to hide the fact that you eat flames. It's too aggressive for them."
Natsu leaned against the wall next to her, looking confused. "Why should we be ashamed of this stuff? It's my Quirk. It's who I am. Isn't it natural?"
Mina sighed, tracing a pattern on the glass. "Maybe in another place. Or another time. But I don't know... the percentage of students with mutation quirks that drastically alter appearance is really low in this school. We stick out."
She turned to him, a fragile smile on her face. "I look weird. That's just the truth. This is our last year of elementary school, anyway. Next year, I'm applying to a Junior High far away from here. I want to start a new life. I want to find friends who don't look at my horns first and my face second."
Natsu stared at her, processing her words. Then, his jaw dropped.
"Hah?!" he shouted. "What do you mean? Without you, I'm gonna fail the exams for sure!"
Mina blinked, then laughed, though it sounded a bit wet. "Is that all you care about? Your grades?"
"No, but seriously!" Natsu panicked.
"Natsu," she interrupted, her expression turning serious. "Do you still aspire to be a Hero?"
The change in Natsu's demeanor was instant. The panic vanished, replaced by a fierce, determined grin that showed off his canines.
"Of course," he said, his voice steady and full of conviction. "It's the only thing I think I'll actually be good at in this life."
Mina looked at him, studying the fire in his eyes. She smiled, a genuine, bright smile this time.
"Then promise me," she said. "Promise me that we will both apply to U.A. High School. The Hero Course. We'll meet there."
Natsu scratched the back of his head, his confidence wavering slightly. "That might be tough."
"What do you mean?" Mina asked.
"I mean... I'm definitely going to fail the written entrance exams," Natsu said with brutal honesty.
Mina's eyebrow twitched. She let out a heavy sigh of exasperation. "Is that really all that worries you? You big idiot." She pushed off the wall and started walking back toward the classroom. "I'll pray for your success, Salamander."
Natsu watched her back as she walked away, the morning light framing her pink silhouette. He slumped against the window.
"Seriously..." he muttered to himself, terrified. "What am I going to do about the Junior High entrance exams?!"
The rest of the school day passed in a blur of boring lectures and Natsu trying desperately to stay awake during math. When the final bell rang, he was the first one out the door, eager to escape the suffocating atmosphere of the classroom.
The walk home was refreshing. Natsu lived in a modest, two-story house in a quiet neighborhood. He ran up the driveway, unlocked the front door, and slammed it shut behind him.
"I'm baaaaack!" he yelled, kicking off his sneakers.
"Welcome back, honey!" a gentle voice called from the kitchen.
Natsu carelessly tossed his backpack into the hallway—it landed with a thud against the wall—and left his shoes scattered in the genkan without aligning them. He sprinted down the hall in his socks, following the savory aroma wafting through the house.
He burst into the kitchen. "I'm starving!"
Standing by the stove was his mother. She was beautiful, with soft, pale skin, deep blue eyes, and long pink hair tied back in a loose ponytail. She was stirring a large pot of soup that bubbled over the gas stove.
"Welcome home, Natsu," she said, smiling warmly over her shoulder. "Sit down, dinner is almost rea—"
She didn't get to finish the sentence.
Natsu, driven by a hunger that wasn't for soup, leaned forward. His mouth opened wide, and with a deep inhalation, he sucked the roaring fire right off the stove burner.
WHOOSH.
The flames detached from the gas outlet and streamed into his mouth like noodles. He swallowed them in one go, leaving the burner dead and only the hissing sound of leaking gas remaining.
"Mmmm!" Natsu hummed, his cheeks puffed out as he chewed happily, savoring the spicy, hot texture of the flames.
"NATSU..."
His mother frozen, the ladle hovering in mid-air. Veins of pure irritation popped out on her forehead. The gentle atmosphere evaporated instantly.
Just then, the sound of the front door opening echoed through the house.
A tall man stepped into the entryway. He had messy black hair, sharp black eyes framed by rectangular glasses, and wore a slightly rumpled business suit. He looked exhausted. He slowly loosened his tie, sighing after a long day at the office.
He looked down. He saw the yellow backpack thrown haphazardly against the wall. He saw the white sneakers kicked off in two different directions.
"I'm ho—"
WHACK!
A loud, metallic clang resonated from the kitchen, followed by a howl of pain.
"OWWWWW!"
The man blinked. He quickly kicked off his dress shoes and walked briskly toward the kitchen.
There, he found Natsu lying flat on his back on the kitchen floor, clutching his head and rolling side to side. His mother stood over him, brandishing a metal soup ladle like a sword.
"How many times have I told you?!" she scolded, waving the ladle. "Stop eating the fire from the stove! You're going to blow up the house one day, you foolish son!"
The father leaned against the doorframe and started to chuckle. The tension in his shoulders from work melted away at the sight.
"Now, now," he said, his voice deep and amused. "You don't have to be so strict with him, dear."
Natsu sat up, nursing a rapidly growing bump on his head.
The father walked over, crouching down to Natsu's level. "Hey, champ. Rough day?"
"I was just hungry," Natsu grumbled, crossing his arms.
"I know, I know," the father smiled. He reached into his suit pocket. "Look what I got for you."
He pulled out a sleek, metallic object. It was a lighter, but not a normal one. It was shaped like a miniature revolver.
Natsu's eyes lit up—literally. "Whoa!"
The father clicked the trigger. A steady, strong blue-and-orange flame erupted from the barrel.
Natsu scrambled to his feet, the pain of the ladle forgotten. He stared at the flame, mesmerized. "That's awesome!!"
"Dear!" the mother sighed, placing a hand on her cheek in exasperation. "You are the one who needs to stop spoiling him..."
The father laughed, reaching out to ruffle Natsu's spiky pink hair. Natsu didn't even notice; he had already leaned in and slurped the flame from the lighter, a look of pure bliss on his face as he tasted the high-quality fuel.
"It's okay to pamper him a little," the father said softly, watching his son eat the fire. "And it's okay to encourage his Quirk."
He looked at Natsu with immense pride.
"He aspires to be a Hero in this age of Heroes," the father said, his voice firm. "One day, when a building is burning and people have lost hope... I trust that Natsu will be the one capable of walking into the inferno and saving everyone."
Natsu swallowed the fire and grinned at his dad, his teeth shining.
The mother watched them, her anger fading. A soft smile graced her lips as she turned back to the stove. She clicked the igniter, bringing the fire back to life under the soup pot.
"Alright, alright," she said gently. "Sit down, you two. Dinner will be ready in moments."
The kitchen filled with the smell of food and the warmth of family again..