After dropping the safe with the letter inside in the dorms, Natsu and I headed back to his car.

"This is it." He sighed as he sat in the drivers seat.

Riggs Arcade was where we were headed. Apparently Crimson Scale's base is located near there and that's where they wanted Natsu to get his father. All we had to do was wait and I guess they'd appear, take the key and give us his dad.

The drive there was silent; mostly due to our anxiety toward the upcoming situation.

We stopped outside a small building. It looked quite quirky, holding a large flickering, lit-up sign above the door saying 'Riggs Arcade'.

"What a weird place for an arcade..." I spoke, observing our sparse surroundings.

"I guess they needed a desolate area to carry out their deals." Suggested Natsu.

We drove through small towns and villages, ending up in the middle of the countryside outside this empty arcade. It was very weird.

I looked over at Natsu, seeing him fidget in his seat of the car; entwining his fingers together and furrowing his brows. He must be worried.

"Natsu?" I broke the silence, looking up to meet his worried eyes.

"It's going to be okay." I assured.

I placed my hand on his lower arm, squeezing it as if it was transferring some kind of hope to relax him... Though I wasn't sure if there was any.

"What if they don't have my dad Luce? What do we do then?" He wavers, doubting the whole plan as he stared at the steering wheel infront of him. "I mean, if I go there now... maybe their plan the whole time was to get me there so they could kidnap me too..."

"No Natsu." I said softly, gently grasping his chin with my fingers and turning his gaze back towards me. "You will go there, Igneel will be there and you will save him. Don't doubt this now Natsu, if they try anything I can ring the police. I'll be right here in the car waiting."

I tried my best to reassure him though I didn't really know if it was working. He gave me sad smile, before taking the key from the box, and opening the car door.

Once out of the car he turned around, bending down to be level with the car and placed a hand on the door for support. He popped his head in the open door way.

"Stay here Luce, I won't be long." He said, before stepping back and closing the car door.

I watched as he walked towards the arcade, passing by it and heading behind.

:

Natsu squinted; trying to adjust his eyes to the light of the sun that was slowly creeping above the horizon. Rocks crunched under his feet as he nervously inched his way around to the far end of the building.

He stopped at the corner, contemplating whether to go any further or just run home, hide in a ball and wish for all his worries to go away; which of course wouldn't work.

He let out a long breath, balled up his fists, and stepped around the corner of the building.

'The back entrance to Riggs Arcade.'

That was where he was right? Why was no one here?

Natsu looked around the area, a little stunned.

There was a large area of empty land behind the arcade building, meaning he could easily see his father... who wasn't there. He scanned the area, taking a few steps around as if they would suddenly appear infront of him.

I should have known. Thought Natsu. This whole thing was probably some stupid pra-

"Dad!" Natsu beamed, a giant smile exploding across his face as his father trudged around the dark corner of the building.

There, across the way Igneel stood. This was real. After a whole year, Natsu could finally see his father again.

Meanwhile,

Lucy was sat in the car. Her teeth tugged at the broken skin of her bottom lip as she waited nervously. She had no idea how long to wait to know if something was wrong or not.

Natsu had only been gone for 10 minutes, but she couldn't help but worry.

Lucy snapped out of her thoughts when she saw movement ahead of her. Her eyes swiftly darted upward, locking on a black figure not too far away.

Her nose scrunched up and her eyes squinted as she tried to determine whether the figure was walking towards or away from her. Her mental question was quickly answered as she noticed the figure becoming larger by the second.

Crap! She thought as she scrambled around in the car trying to duck below the window out of sight.

She waited a long few minutes, hoping that the person had passed and she was safe.

She slowly got up from her crouching position on the passenger seat floor, and sat back in the seat. A long breath was released from her lungs as she saw no one around. She closed her eyes in relief, trying to calm her beating heart.

She had a shock once she had opened her eyes again. She jolted in her seat, letting a loud scream that burst from her lips.

The man from the train station stood outside her window, a creepy smile thread through his lips.

"Hello pretty." He said, though quiet, it was still audible through the car window that was open a creak.

"W-what do you want?" Whimpered Lucy, frozen in her seat, staring at the man in black.

"You of course." He spoke, voice laced with myschevy.

Before Lucy knew it, the car door was open, a bag was thrown over her helpless head, and she was dragged away from the safety of Natsu's car, to an unknown destination.

Natsu started to run toward his father, a huge smile spread across his lips, a hole finally patched in his torn heart.

But he stopped in his tracks, making a holt.

Igneel wasn't smiling. Was he not happy to see his own son? Or was it something else?

Natsu took some time to examine his previously missing father; His deep red hair was long and greasy, tied half up, the rest flowing down his back. His clothes were rags. Holes and tears peppered them, showing his dirty, bruised skin underneath. He looked awful.

Natsu looked into his dark eyes. They were empty... showing nothing but sadness and fear. Natsu's patched up heart was once again torn. Seeing his father like this only left his imagination to guess what he had been through, how he had suffered.

"Dad..." He croaked, still standing a few feet away from him.

Igneel wasn't looking at Natsu. Igneel was looking at the floor, his facial expression unreadable.

Natsu's eyes left his broken father, darting over to another figure that was emerging from behind the building.

"Hello Natsu." Said a man. He was wearing all black and had long yellow hair.

"Crimson." Natsu said, his face hardening in anger.

"That's right. It's me. Crimson, the leader of Crimson Scale." The man said, a smirk spreading across his lips. 'Now, you know why you're here, so where's the key?"

"Here." Natsu stated, taking a step forward and placing the golden key in Crimson's waiting hands. "Now give me my father."

The man let out a loud cackle, distorting his face with ugly wrinkles.

"Silly kid." He laughed, placing the key in his pocket and turning toward Igneel.

"Go on, I'll let you tell him." He told Igneel, a smirk spreading across his face.

Igneel look up from the floor, connecting his empty eyes with Natsu's. He had sorrow and guilt spread across his face.

"They know you took the letter from the safety deposit box." Igneel spoke, his voice creaky and weak.

Natsu's eyes widened a little. How did they know?

"W-what are you talking about?" Natsu turned to Crimson. "We did not such thing! Just take the key and give me my father!" Natsu spat.

Crimson just cackled again, his voice echoing through the thick air behind the arcade building.

"Give us the letter Natsu." The man demanded.

Igneel stayed stood by Crimson's side, once again looking at the floor sadly.

"No, I gave you the key. That's what you asked for, so give me Igneel!" Natsu shouted, becoming impatient, just wanting to get back to Lucy and go home with his father.

"I didn't want it to come to this." The man sighed, though a small sign of a smile was still evident across his face. "Bring her out!" He called from the area he and Igneel entered from.

A man dressed in black emerged from behind the wall. He was holding a person by the arm, dragging them with him unwillingly. Natsu immediately recognised the person as Lucy.

"Lucy!" Natsu called in fear, looking at his loved one with a bag on her head. He turned toward Crimson who's face was holding a devious smirk. "Let her go." Natsu spat fiercely.

"Give us the letter and we'll give you your little girlfriend back." Crimson shrugged, flicking his yellow hair behind his shoulder with a hand.

Lucy whimpered in her bag. She began struggling, trying to kick her way out of the grasp of the man dressed in black. Before anyone could blink, the man was on the floor, Lucy had pulled the back off her head and was bolting toward Natsu.

"Natsu!" She called, wrapping her arms around his neck tightly. "Don't give him the letter." She whispered in his ear.

"Get her!" Crimson called, angrily urging the man who had been 'Lucy Kicked' in the face, to get off the floor.

He scrambled up, patting his legs down in the process before running toward Natsu and Lucy.

"RUN!" Lucy yelled, grabbing my wrist and pulling me with her.

But I stopped.

"Dad! Come on!" I shouted, turning to face him but still keeping a tight hold of Lucy's hand.

Suddenly Crimson grabbed Igneels upper arm.

"He's not going anywhere kid."

The man in black stopped chasing Lucy as anger tore through Natsu's eyes.

"Lucy go." Natsu said through gritted teeth. He didn't want her to see this.

"No Natsu I'm not leaving you." She said sternly, looking into his eyes to show she wasn't going to be changing her mind any time soon.

Natsu slipped out of Lucy's grasp, bolting toward Crimson and throwing a hard punch in his face. Before Natsu could make contact Crimson grabbed his clenched hand and threw Natsu to the floor. Igneel stood by Crimson's side, still looking at the floor sadly.

"Natsu!" Lucy yelled in fear.

Natsu quickly recovered, getting up from the unforgiving ground and surged toward the man again.

This time his fist collided, stunning Crimson for a few long seconds. Enough time for Natsu to kick him in the crotch, leaving him crumbled in the ground in pain.

"You're gonna regret that." Said the man in black, running toward Natsu angrily. Natsu blocked the man's punches; ducking and swinging out of reach.

Lucy stood to the side, nervously biting her nails in fear of Natsu getting injured, while simultaneously keeping an eye on the wounded Crimson.

Lucy's eyes shot up as a loud yelled escaped from Natsu. He was curled over, holding his stomach, a look of pain across his face.

"Natsu!" She called again, before running toward him to help.

"No Lucy!" He croaked. "Don't, you'll get hurt!"

Lucy stopped, realised all she would do was slow Natsu down. She couldn't fight. She couldn't defend herself. She was useless. She looked at the floor sadly, walking towards Igneel who now had stood back a little from the area.

That fight carried on; Natsu throwing punches, the man in black throwing punches... no one was getting anywhere.

Crimson was still lay on the floor, somehow not recovering from the fatal blow in his lower region.

"So you're Natsu's dad?" Lucy spoke quietley, now stood next to Igneel.

Igneel looked up at Lucy, giving her a slight nod.

"He told me you had been missing for a year, did Crimson take you for all that time?" Lucy asked, becoming curious.

Igneel looked back down at the floor, a sad look taking over his drooping features. His mouth opened as words were about to come out, but he was cut off by Natsu.

"QUICK LET'S GO, NOW!" Natsu yelled, grabbing Lucy's hand and telling Igneel to follow.

Lucy looked back to see the the man in black on the floor next to Crimson.

"RUN!"