His Muse. (Nalu)

1. Murder in Magnolia

After his muse was morbidly murdered, townsfolk would often gossip that the great Natsu Dragneel locked himself in the attic of his beloved theater, most like his childhood idol, the Phantom.

"Natsu, you must eat." Mira insisted. She was the closest thing he had to a mother. She ran the bar next to the playhouse, coming to every show he puts on.

There was silence coming from the other side of the door. She sighed and continued walking down the stairs. A little blue haired boy of 5 was staring up at her as she descended.

"When's Natsu-nii coming down?" He asked.

"I'm sorry Happy, I tried to get him to eat. But, he is grieving." Mira apologetically answered. The small child's face adorned a very cute and determined look.

"I'll get him to eat." With his chin up and lips puckered he reached up for the platter, though Mira who was busy thinking of his cuteness, held it a bit too high.

"Oh, sorry." She gently placed the playwrite's dinner in Happy' s waiting arms. "Be careful!"

After a few minutes of struggling, he finally hiked the staircase and knocked on Natsu' s door. "Natsu-nii?" Happy called. "Can you open the door?"

The child heard shuffling and footsteps. There was a pause before the door was creecked open just enough for Happy to waddle in with his dinner plate.

Natsu' s sunken eyes and messy pink hair frightened the boy, and the dim lighting of his dusty room didn't help with the Salamanders image.

"I brought you dinner, Nii-chan!" He attempted to cheer up his friend. "There's meat, and potatoes, and rice, and-"

"Happy." Natsu finally spoke, interrupting his little brothers ingredient list. "I need water."

"There's that too! And all the food has lots of spices, making it hot just how you like it!" Natsu took the cup and gulped it down while the excitable 5 year old bounced around, free from the heavy tray.

"What's going on downstairs?" The sulking pinkette asked as he set down the empty cup.

"Well, a bunch of cops came to take Lissana' s body away and they're trying to solve her case." Happy went on as he jumped on the creaky bed.

"What?!" Natsu asked outraged. She had only died today, it's too soon. If they take her away then that means it's real. Lissana really did die. Furiously opening the door, he stormed down the stairs only to run into a blonde who poured scalding hot coffee on him. "Ah!" Natsu cussed.

"I am so sorry! Oh my gosh I should have looked where I was going!" The women fussed, scouring for napkins. It wasn't exactly the heat that affected him, for some strange reason he could endure large amounts of heat, more the surprise of a beautiful girl spilling coffee all over you.

Natsu sprinted past her, just missing her napkins by an inch. He couldn't deal with that now. He spotted scarlet hair in the crowd of cops. Bingo. The Salamander made his way over to his best friend and stage manager.

"Stop flirting, I need you." Natsu pulled away the blushing women, leaving an equally blushing Detective Fernandez.

"I was not flirting with Detective Jellal, we were simply discussing the specifics of the murder. He was interviewing me more like-" Erza sputtered out excuses.

"I honestly don't care." The director said harshly. "Where did they take Lissana?"

"They took her to the morgue about an hour ago." She was definitely confused by her friends animalistic growl. "Why? Natsu, what's gotten into you?"