Lily winced when her mother pressed some ointment on her ankle. She was sitting on top of the bar, Silus still in her arms.

"I'm sorry, Lily." Lucy said softly as she began wrapping a cloth around her ankle. Lily just huffed and looked away. Sighing, Lucy looked at the little cat in her daughter's arms. "Where did you come from?"

"I don't know." Silus frowned, and Lucy frowned with him.

"It's okay." Lily said. "I don't know where I came from either."

"Lily, that's not true." Her mother scolded.

"You told me I came from a lab!" Lily shouted. "That's for sure a lie!"

Lucy finished wrapping her ankle and sighed. "That wasn't a lie, Lily." Silus was looking back and forth between the two, trying to follow along.

"I don't believe anything you say!" Before Lucy could stop her, she jumped off the bar, wincing as she landed.

"Lily!"

"Don't talk to me!" Once again, Lily ran out of the guild.

Lucy was about to run after her, but a flash of light shone in front of her. "I'll watch her, princess."

"Thanks, Loke." Lucy sighed, tears falling when the lion spirit kissed her on top of her head. She knew he would instantly tell her if anything was to happen, so she let him run after her and she stayed at the bar. Her daughter needed space from her right now.

Macao pulled her in for a hug. "It'll be okay." She wanted to believe his words, but everything in the universe screamed otherwise.

Lily gritted her teeth at the pain exploding in her ankle while she limped towards her home. She didn't have enough anger or energy left to go lash out in the woods again, she just felt... heartbroken. She squeaked slightly when she was picked up from behind, but she instantly recognized Loke's smell so she relaxed in his arms. She looked up at him and puffed out her cheeks when he smiled softly down at her.

"You seem to have ran off before your friend could get his wounds looked at." He said as he looked at the burnt cat in her arms.

She opened her mouth in shock and looked down at the cat with sad eyes. "I'm sorry, Silus."

"I'll be fine either way." Silus crossed his arms and closed his eyes.

"When we get there, I'll give you a bath." Lily reassured him, but it had the opposite intended effect. Silus' claws popped out and he growled, startling Lily slightly, but she still didn't let go of him.

Loke chuckled. "Cats don't like water, Lily."

She looked up at him curiously. "What about lions?"

He grimaced as a few unpleasant memories involving him walking in on Aquarius and Scorpio flashed through his mind. "Yeah... I can't say I like water either."

Silus' eyebrow rose. "Did you just call yourself a lion?"

Lily grinned down at the yellow exceed. "He is a lion... and my uncle."

Loke chuckled. "That's right, I'm a lion and the leader of the twelve zodiac gates."

"Whoa..." Silus looked out towards the house they were approaching before he continued. "That's cool, I guess."

Loke's shoulders slumped as he approached the front door. "It is cool."

Lily giggled at him as he gently set her down to open the door. He picked her back up and walked through the threshold, kicking the door closed behind him. He carried them both upstairs to her room and set her down on the bed. "Thanks, uncle Loke."

"Of course, princess." He straightened his tie before he turned towards the bathroom. "Now, let's get Silus taken care of."

Lily looked down when she heard Silus' claws pop out. "Don't worry, I won't let him give you a bath."

"No baths, I promise." Loke reassured as he came back into the room with a box and a wet rag. He sat next to them on the bed and handed Lily the rag. "Would you clean him for me so I can see his wounds?"

She nodded and grabbed the rag, setting Silus on the bed between them so she could carefully clean his paws. The room was filled with silence for a while, Lily carefully wiping the cat down while Loke rummaged through the contents of the box and placed what he might need on the bed. Silus hissed when the rag went over a burn mark on his back and Lily cringed. "Sorry."

Silus shook his head. "It's fine."

She crumpled the rage in her lap when Loke began putting ointment on some bandages. "Did you know?" She asked the man softly.

Loke sighed as he wrapped the bandage around the cat's leg. "It's a little more complicated than that, Lily."

"How? You all lied to me! It's that simple!"

"Maybe I should tell you the whole story." Loke looked at the little girl. "Will you listen?"

Lily looked down at the rag in her hands, squeezing it a few times, letting the water drip down her legs. "Yeah, fine." Silus frowned as he looked at his savior. She looked so sad and defeated. He didn't know what was going on, which is why he was staying silent, he wanted to know what was making her so sad. His little ears perked up when Loke began talking, and he latched on to every word.

"Do you remember how you used to get sick all time?" He asked her.

"Yeah." She nodded. "I had too much magic." She remembered it all very well, the pain, the nausea. She doubted she would ever forget such a feeling. She also remembered hurting her mother, even though she said it wasn't her fault, she still remembered.

Loke nodded. "You see..." he went on to explain everything in ways she could understand, from Lucy's father forcing her into pregnancy, to her finding Laxus' location and bringing her there, leaving out a few adult details of course.

To say Lily was beyond confused would be accurate. She didn't know she had a grandfather, especially one so evil. He was in jail now and she wondered if she would ever meet him... even though he's evil. She especially didn't understand why her dad didn't want anyone to know about her. Had he been ashamed of her? Her eyes brimmed with tears as she learned more about her dad. She definitely remembered him, and she only really remembered the fun she had with him, so to learn how badly he treated her and her mom at first was heartbreaking.

When Loke was the done with the bandages, Silus crawled back onto Lily's lap, pushing the rag away so she could pet him instead. He felt bad for her and he wanted to comfort her.

"So you see," Loke finished the story. "He was planning on telling you as soon as he got back but... the island vanished."

Lily sniffled as she kept her eyes on the floor. "Adults are stupid."

Loke chuckled at her mumbled words. "They sure can be sometimes."

Lucy snuck into the house later that evening. Loke had told her that Lily and Silus were taking a nap, so she tried to be quiet. She didn't really mind doing the guild's paperwork, but Macao could at least try once in a while. Sighing as she entered the kitchen, she immediately went to the refrigerator and grabbed a beer. When she closed the refrigerator door, her eyes landed on an old picture Lily had drawn. Her fingers moved over the yellow blob, her eyes saddening. She missed him terribly. Her heart clenched when the memory of their last kiss flashed in her mind. "What was I to you?" She whispered to the blob before she set down the unopened beer on the counter and made her way up the stairs to check on her daughter. Not having Laxus around was hard enough, but to not have her daughter by her side would completely crush her. Once she walked up the stairs, she creaked open the door to her daughter's room. She stood in the doorway, watching her daughter sleep for a moment before she crouched down next to the bed and softly raked her fingers through the little girl's hair.

"Mama?" Lily tiredly mumbled as she rubbed her eye.

Lucy smiled as the little girl blinked at her. "Hey, sweetie." They kept their voices low so as to not wake up the sleeping cat that was curled in a ball next to Lily. In reality, Silus had woken up when the door opened, but he wanted to listen to everything, so he stayed quiet. "Are you two okay?"

Lily nodded. "Yeah."

Lucy inwardly cheered that she wasn't telling her to go away. Hope shone in her eyes.

Lily pulled Silus to her chest. If the cat had actually been asleep then that definitely would've woken him up, but he wasn't so he continued playing dead. "You're not completely forgiven."

Lucy smiled sadly at her and placed her head in her hand. "That's okay, I don't expect you to. I really am sorry for not telling you. I thought I was doing what was best for you."

"I know, Loke told me." Lily mumbled as she looked at her.

"None of this has been fair to you." Lucy continued. "I wish things had turned out differently, but we have to make the best of what's given to us."

Lily sighed through her nose. "Is grandpa evil?"

Lucy's eyes widened in surprise, had Loke really told her everything? With a sigh, she chose her words carefully. "No sweetie, I don't think he's evil. My mother was everything to him, and when she died, I think a part of him died with her."

Lily's eyebrows scrunched together. "Can i meet him?"

Lucy's lips parted in surprise. "We might be able to, I'll have to see, okay?"

"Mmkay."

Lucy leaned over and placed a kiss on her forehead, Lily's face scrunched up, but she didn't protest. "Get some rest, sweetie."

"Love you, mama."

Lucy froze at her words. Every fiber of her being wanted to crush her daughter in a hug and plant kisses all over her face, but she resisted. Instead, she let the warmth blooming from her chest spread through her body and she smiled. "I love you too, sweetie."

When she made it back to the kitchen, Loke appeared and leaned against the counter. She reached around him to grab her beer.

"Do you really think it's wise to go see that man?" The lion spirit muttered, crossing his arms over his chest.

Lucy cracked the bottle open and took a sip, hopping on the counter. "I don't know, but every family member she never knew she'd ever known is now gone." She scrunched her eyebrows and shook her head. "I mean... she probably wants to know him before he disappears too."

Loke frowned at her. "I still don't like it."

Lucy sighed. "There's nothing he can do right now, it should be safe."

"Well I'll be watching the whole time."

She smiled at her faithful lion. "Thanks, Loke."

His face softened as he smiled at her. "Always, princess."

"Mr. Heartfilia, you have a visitor."

Said man's head snapped up to the bars as some figures approached. His eyes widened when he saw just who was at his cell door.

Lucy's heart sunk when she saw the man. He had grown a thick beard, and he wore rags instead of a sharp suit for once. He definitely didn't look quite the same. She thought that this look suited him better. She pulled Lily to her side and stepped back slightly when the man lunged forward and grabbed the bars.

"Is it really you, Lucy?" He asked with wide eyes, she looked so much older, so much like her mother. His eyes drifted to the little girl hugging his daughter's side. The little girl moved slightly behind her mother when his eyes connected with hers. "Is this..?"

"Hello father." Her voice was as bland as the stoic mask on her face as she looked at the man before her. "I hope you remember your granddaughter."

"My granddaughter." He breathed as he crouched down. "Hello there little one." He smiled at her when she shyly waved at him. "It's very nice to meet you. What's your name?"

Lucy crouched down when her daughter looked up at her nervously and she gave her a small smile. "It's okay, sweetie."

Lily looked back at her grandfather, who was looking back at her eagerly. "Lily."

"Lily." He repeated in awe. "That's a lovely name. How old are you, Lily?"

"Seven." She mumbled. "How old are you?"

The older man chuckled. "Older than I should be."

Lucy huffed through her nose as she watched her father carefully. He was much different than the last time she'd seen him. It was possible that being in jail had changed him for the better, but it felt like she was looking at a stranger and it didn't sit well with her.

"I made this for you." Lily gained courage and held out a picture towards him.

His face was in pure shock, and he tentatively reached out and grabbed it. He smiled as he looked at the scribbles, he couldn't really tell what it was, but it was the best thing he'd ever seen.

"It's me and mama."

A tear fell down his cheek and he smiled brightly at the little girl. "Thank you, dear."

The little girl smiled back at him. "You're welcome... grandpa."

He choked at hearing that, more tears threatening to flow from his eyes.

"One minute left!" The guard down the hallway yelled at them.

"Lily, can you go wait over there with uncle Loke?" As soon as his name passed her lips, Loke appeared and grabbed hold of Lily's free hand.

"It was nice to meet you, grandpa." Lily smiled and waved, letting Loke lead her away. The lion spirit glared at the man behind the bars until he was out of sight.

"It was wonderful to meet you too, Lily!" Jude shouted, hoping the little girl had heard him. Loke appearing had surprised him, but he had a wife and a daughter who were both celestial spirit wizards, so it didn't surprise him that much. He looked back at his daughter and frowned, bowing his head slightly. "Lucy.. I'm so sorry for what I've done to you. Not a day goes by that I don't regret what I've put you through. Your mother... she would be so ashamed of my actions."

Lucy crossed her arms. "What's done is done. I'm only here because my daughter wanted to meet you. There are no guarantees that I'll let you see her again. I'm much stronger than I was back then, so if you try anything, I will stop you."

Jude smiled sadly at her. "You have nothing to fear from me, Lucy. I wish you nothing but happiness for the rest of your life."

She huffed. She didn't know the man before her, and to be honest, she didn't want to. If he had really changed for the better, then good, that meant there was one less asshole in the world, but for her the damage was done. She would never get her childhood back. She did this for her daughter and that was it.

"Time's up!"

Lucy looked at his face one more time before she spun on her heel. "Goodbye, father."

"Goodbye, Lucy." He whispered, sadness swirling in his eyes as he watched her walk away. He looked down at the picture in his hands and smiled. He held the picture to his chest as he sat back down on his cot.

Four years later, Macao drummed his fingers against the bar, leaning his cheek against his fist. Kinana was furiously wiping down any surface she could find, Romeo was pacing back and forth along the walls. Reedus was trying to paint everyone in the guildhall, but kept getting frustrated and ripping the page off. Everyone was tense, on edge. They had gotten word from Blue Pegasus that the island had reappeared. Bisca, Alzack, and a few others had gone to investigate, and now they were waiting to hear something. He sighed as he grabbed his mug and began to chug.

Suddenly, the doors burst open and a familiar voice, one they hadn't heard in seven years shouted, "We're back!"

Macao slowly turned, only to spit out his beer, his eyes bugging out of his head when he saw who it was.

Hey guys! Sorry for the wait, I literally moved and graduated last week and had to get internet set up and blah blah blah anyways, I wanna shout out to my OG readers, like y'all were there from my very first story, which was also a LaLu, you guys know who you are and I really appreciate the support. Oh yeah, and if the cursing is too much for some of you, I'm sorry but you probably shouldn't be reading M fics lol get outta here. I so appreciate all of you though, you're the best. Muah!