Disappointingly enough, Natsu doesn't even have to fight.
By the time Gray rushes down, Lyon stumbles in behind him— and the demon crumbles, its last cries of life leaving him with the ice that sustained his form.
"That's ridiculous! You're telling me that—" Lyon bites his tongue, "you're not fucking telling me this. Fuck I— I'm not believing this."
"What did you do?!" Gray yells, turning to Natsu.
Natsu sighs, when Gray runs up to him, grabbing him by the collar, looking him up and down to find wounds that definitely weren't from a scuffle with Deliora.
"I didn't do anything," Natsu says. "It was already dying when it got out."
"What?"
"He's right…" Mirajane whispers, hands over her mouth in surprise. "This is a demon that's… this is a demon that's so weakened… but it doesn't make sense. Why…?"
Natsu turns to her with inspiration. "Oh! Good timing, Mira! Since there's a demon here and all, you wanna take it over?"
"WHAT?" Lyon and Gray bark simultaneously.
"Oh no, no!" Mira hisses, shrinking back, "absolutely not! That is in such bad taste!"
"She's right!" Gray lets go of Natsu with a huff. "Plus, this isn't a normal demon! Sure she's got some crazy forms, but this is a whole different ballpark!"
Natsu pouts. "Okay, fair," he says. Then, brimming into a smile. "But hey, Gray. Your teacher sealed this thing, didn't she? She's pretty cool!"
Gray eyes him skeptically. "Of course she is."
Mirajane watches them, and she smiles, assured.
Gray falls to his knees, needing to sit down as he buries his face in his hands and sighs longsufferingly. The water flooded through the dungeon, flowing rapidly through the floor and out through the gaps in the cavernrock, into the sea.
"...is this really how it's going to end?" Lyon whispers, miserable.
There are tears in his eyes, and Gray tries his best not to look over, knowing he'd be a reflection of it if he were to even breathe with a little too much emotion.
"Yeah," Gray says, unable to suppress the choke of a sob in his voice. "I guess you were never able to surpass Ur after all."
Lyon curls into his arms, and wails.
It doesn't take longer for Gray to break out into tears, mourning.
Across from each other, Mirajane gestures for Natsu, and they quietly leave, mischievous giggles in their throats. The two ice mages deserved their privacy, and now, Natsu and Mira were sure that they could be left alone together to sort themselves out.
It's when Mirajane hands Natsu his scarf back that she finally realizes what's wrong with the island. Her head weighs down from what seemed like exhaustion, but she takes the scarf briefly again, and it's like her head clears right up.
"Hey, Natsu… does your scarf have… demon-suppressing abilities, or something?" she asks. And then, when Natsu gives her a weird glance, she corrects herself in a fluster, "or anything like it! Like, a ward? Purifying magic? Not for demons specifically, but like, just anything about protection against dark magic?"
Natsu raises a brow, throwing his scarf around his neck.
"Not that I know of, but…" he hums. "But Anna-sensei… uh. The one that made it was a Celestial Spirit mage. Heavenly magic and all. Maybe that's got something to do with it?"
Mirajane's eyes light right up. "That's it!"
"Huh? What is it?"
"No, just—" Mirajane looks up, toward the moon that's purple again. "No wonder you and Gray and all the people performing the ritual are completely unaffected. It all makes sense now!"
"...what does?"
"What? Of course the— the curse of the island, Natsu! The one that's turning them into demons, and all! What did you think we were here to do?"
Natsu needed a very long moment.
Then, "Mira, you're the only one who heard them out. Me and Gray just came here to throw hands with Deliora."
Mira groans into her hands. "Oh right. For god's sake… Thank goodness I came along," she says. "All of you are utterly hopeless."
Gray brings Lyon out of the ruins only to find a note pasted on a rock.
"[We're going to fix the village's problem first, meet us there later 3 from, Mira.," Gray says. "What's with them, just leaving me behind? Jerks."
"...how did you read the heart out loud?" Lyon mumbles.
"Shut up. I haven't forgiven you for everything yet."
"And I don't need your forgiveness, just get out of here and back to your friends already."
The way he spoke of friends, as if it was a despicable concept— Gray turns to him with a sigh. Lyon leans against a rock, and the way his shoulder tensed with each breath, Gray knew that those were early onsets of frostbite, seeping through his magic and affecting his inevitably human body either way. Normal frost was one thing, magical another. It'll heal, but it'll also hurt like hell.
Gray winces, nursing the stab wound at his side. Mira did some emergency first aid, but it's definitely not enough. He'll have to get back.
But Lyon's also injured. Gray couldn't say he felt sorry for that, but after everything, he didn't exactly want Lyon to die here, either.
"You too, then," Gray says. "You. Go back to your friends."
Lyon scoffs, throwing up a hand dismissively. "You thought we were friends? You're as naive as you used to be. They were pawns, and I was the stupid ringleader. I have no use for them, and no longer have a use for me. That's where our relationship ends."
Gray falls silent.
Lyon's always been better at making friends than he was. And yet... it's ironic, really.
"I see," Gray says. "It's not like any of us are going to bring this event to the government, so don't worry, we're not pressing charges. Instead, you should join a guild."
Lyon looks up at him with a loud "huh?" with clear disgust on his face. "No fucking way."
Gray chuckles. "Even I managed to make some friends in a guild," he says. "I'm sure there's some place out there that will do the same for you, too."
Because Gray knows he might never be able to do the same for Lyon again; because Gray knows Lyon may never open his heart for him again; and because neither of them were prepared for that kind of step forward just yet.
They're still two children, too afraid to face their fears.
But now, at least… they're strong enough to see each other on their separate paths with an agreement to disagree.
"I don't need friends," Lyon says.
"Too bad," Gray says, turning away and walking down the mountain, making a crutch out of ice for himself. "I don't think your sentiments are shared."
Gray makes it out of shouting distance before Lyon's range of expletives run out.
Lyon hisses, catching his breath. His own injuries were horrible as well, and he's quite sure if he leaves these overnight, he'd probably get infections. But the ice damage was really hurting, and he didn't quite know if he'll be able to force himself out of here soon enough.
"Hey, uh…"
Lyon jerks upright.
"We were just thinking," Yuka steps out from behind the rock, "you know how our deal was that we give you some minions in the form of ourselves, and you help us defeat Deliora? So since that kinda fell apart, can we revise those clauses for a bit?"
"We are not MINIONS!" Toby yells. "We are bodyguards! Soldiers! Something cooler than MINIONS!"
Lyon balks. "Why are you guys still here?!" He winces when he jostles his injuries. "The other Isvan people have already run off, haven't they? Why didn't you go with them?"
Sherry crouches down beside him, gently cradling his cheek in a way that no one's done for him since Ur.
Lyon slaps it away. "Stop it! I don't need your pity!"
"It's not pity," Sherry says, keeping her distance, but smiling warmly. "It's Love."
Lyon falls silent.
"So, as I was saying," Yuka says, stepping closer, looking over at him with a smile. "Here's our suggestion. We give you a stable job, a roof over your head, and an opportunity to start fresh in Fiore," he grins, "and in return, you join Lamia Scale."
Lyon looks at them with surprise.
Toby is grinning widely, Sherry smiling sweetly, the first aid kit in her lap. Lyon looks between them again, not quite believing what he was hearing.
"So, pretty sweet deal, right?" Yuka beams.
Gray comes back to the village just in time to see Mirajane finish up her explanation.
"Grayyy! Make us a really long spear!"
Confused, Gray builds it and hands it to a very excited Natsu, who cheers, and enthusiastically climbs up the watchtower. He is very unsettled. Mira transforms one arm and takes flight on her wings, holding Natsu by the collar.
"What's… going on?"
"We're going to destroy the moon," Mira says.
"Oh… I guess that— wait, what?"
"Mira's gonna take me and fly as far as she can, and then she's gonna launch me into the sky!" Natsu says, ecstatic as a puppy. "Then I'm gonna boost as far as I can go and then yeet this spear at the moon!"
Gray does not know where to begin.
"Okay… yeah. Yeah that's the kinda thing that'll happen if I leave you two alone." He does not have the energy to try. He just closes his eyes, and blacks right out.
Gray wakes up with the sunlight, groggy and dosed up in anaesthetic.
"Oh! Are you alright?" says a blue demon-faced villager who he does not recognize.
She's wrapped in way too many bandages to look safe, and grievous burn wounds peeking through them. He peeks down and catches sight of a foot that's too short. He averts his eyes immediately.
"What happened?" Gray mutters. "Did I black out? Did I fail to stop the moon destruction? Are investigators going to identify the murder weapon as my ice spear? I need to know, I need to prepare my eulogy. Please."
The girl stares at him, a little bewildered.
Beside her, Mirajane whispers, "Lulu, it's funnier if you leave him confused. Don't explain."
"Mira, I can hear you."
"I don't get it. Why'd he fix the village?" Natsu mutters, looking through the building to check for anything suspicious.
The villagers celebrated. Bobo reunites with his grandfather, Lulu begins to recover, and everything is well and good. It's a surprise that the entire village was full of demons, but it certainly made sense.
(Natsu clenches his scarf and sighs. So the reason he was fine was because he was wearing this, huh? He doubted it'd have had a huge effect either way, but he couldn't help but wonder.)
"Well, I guess it's fine," Natsu says. "I guess leaving the village all destroyed would leave a bad taste in my mouth too."
Mirajane chuckles. "You really hold a grudge, don't you?"
"Of course I do! That guy's bad news!" he says. "He's bound to come back. I'll have to find him again and see what his real motives are."
Mirajane hums, "if you really thought so, why didn't you just capture him?"
Sure, there were circumstances, but if Natsu truly wanted to track someone down, nothing could stop him. Not even the sea.
"Because he's not the ringleader," Natsu says.
Zalty was a real Zeref cultist.
So Natsu knows, if he wants to get to the bottom of this— he has to let him go, and wait for Zalty to bring him to the core.
It wasn't as if Natsu had the noble goal of eradicating them or anything— he definitely feels a draw toward the West, but he doesn't want to bother with it. The problem here was that there's a group of enthusiasts right around his home turf, and he doesn't like that at all.
(This is his territory. Everyone else needed to fuck off and know their place.)
"Well, whatever!" Natsu groans. "I'm hungry!"
The guild wizards are sent off with a feast and lots of fanfare.
"Oh dear, we can't accept it, definitely not," Mirajane says, when the chief tries to offer her the reward money. "We weren't here on the quest, anyways. Your feelings are enough."
"We can't possibly!" Moka says, "you've done so much for us! Would you at least accept it as a gift from a friend?"
Mirajane shakes her head. "That would go against the heart of our guild's standing," she says. "We would much prefer if you work that much money into rebuilding, instead. And perhaps, use it to engage in trade with the humans in Hargeon! If you show your love, I'm sure you'll get love in return!"
If they start to get along with the humans at the port, they'll be able to come visit, and slowly ease out the stigma surrounding demons.
"I see… are you sure you won't at least accept the key as a reward?" Moka tries, one last time.
"I'm sure someone else would be more polite about this… but I won't!" Mirajane beams, "our answer is no! Oh, but I'd totally accept a free ship ride home."
Moka bursts into laughter. "Very well then! Prepare the sailing vessel, boys!"
The villager erupts in compliant cheers.
Lulu comes up to Mirajane, seated in a wheelchair. Mirajane crouches down, taking her hand gently.
"I can't thank you enough for everything, Miss Mirajane!" Lulu says.
Mirajane crouches down, taking her hands gently. "You're a warrior, Lulu," she says. And then, with all the love in her heart, she says, "thank you so much for surviving."
Lulu giggles at that. "I'm really lucky," she admits. "I protected the chief, but I was too weak to protect myself. But you know… when I saw you take flight. I felt safe, even in so much pain. I wish one day to be like you, Miss Mirajane."
"You can be," Mirajane insists, confidently. "One day, you'll definitely be strong enough to protect anything and everything, including yourself. I believe it. You have my word."
They head home on a ship, and are sent off on Hargeon with a loud roar and calls of coming to visit again.
"...are those demons?" a fisherman asks, horrified.
"Yeah!" Natsu grins. "They're a fun bunch!"
"...really?"
"They're gentle," Gray assures. "They may be demons, but they're civilians. Just like you all. They're pretty nice once you get to know them!"
"And they're far from the weirdest creatures you'll find in Fiore, anyways," Natsu chuckles. "Their food was so good…"
"All you ate was fire chicken," Mirajane says, cheeks puffed up in annoyance. "I told you to eat a balanced diet, and you ignored me!"
"Oh come on, let me indulge!"
"You two are so loud…" Gray groans. "I, on the other hand, have a concussion, so I'm going to go home and sleep for a year. All these back to back emergency missions are tiring me out. I don't even get paid for this crap."
"Yeah, yeah," Mira chuckles. "By the way, Natsu, your scarf's made by a Celestial Spirit wizard? What's that about?"
"It's made by a what?" Gray turns.
Natsu grimaces. "Yeah… she was Igneel's acquaintance, or something."
"So a wizard like Lucy," Gray says. "Speaking of which, was the key they were about to offer a golden gate key? I remember Lucy saying those were valuable. Maybe we should've taken it. It'd have made a good welcome to the guild present."
"Oh, really?" Mira gasps. "Well, too late to change our mind now. Back on topic, though—"
"Wait wait wait," Natsu spirals between the conversation, "there's a Celestial Spirit mage in the guild? Since when?"
"You didn't see her yet? She was literally there when you came home!"
Natsu's face scrunches up in annoyance. "I don't remember. I was busy picking a fight with Gray, I think."
"You admit you were picking a fight?!" Gray snarls.
The Fairy Tail group wandered off quickly, bickering loudly along the way.The fishermen of Hargeon stare incredulously at them, before deeming grimly that yes, they have, in fact, seen much weirder things than demons on mainland Fiore.
One of the fishermen turn toward the demons, who are getting ready to set sail.
"Hey, you demon guys! If you wanna set up a trade export, you'll first need to pay the trade tax! We can help you set up a shop in the area!"
"Woah really?!" Bobo gawks, leaning over the edge of the boat, "you'll let us do that?"
"Yeah! If you want people to appraise your goods just ask around!"
The demons settle into Hargeon easily, becoming yet another eccentric group of traders in Fiore. The country welcomed them warmly, and tourists increased, people coming by just to gawk at the friendly demons.
"Please! I really want this key," says the young girl with short white hair, crouched over the mat. She's little, barely eleven, and yet, she insisted with all the resolve of a girl with determination in her heart. "I'll do anything. I don't have money— but I'll work! I'll help out in your shop. I'm even willing to go to your island and help you forage for new goods. Please…"
Bobo's eyes soften at the sight.
"Of course, young lady," he says. "Do you have parents, though? What do they think of this?"
"I have no one," she says. "That's why I need it. I need to get stronger. So I can prove myself and become someone that can get back what I've lost."
Bobo wants to give her the key, but he knows that would be irresponsible of him. To grant such a young girl this kind of power– she would only push herself too far and destroy herself.
An orphan, running around Hargeon, desperate for strength.
"I think it's a good idea," says Lulu, making her way over on a crutch and a prosthetic foot. She changes her face into a human's, smiling warmly. The scars on her face are gruesome, still partially bandaged, but clearly left its mark on most of her skin.
The white-haired girl's eyes light up with hope.
Lulu gets on her knees, taking the girl's hands in her own.
"You remind me of someone I've met before. Your hair's even the same colour," she says. "And that girl told me that I could become the strongest one day, even after I turned out like this. You remind me of her. That's why I think I believe the same thing about you."
The girl blushes slightly, averting her eyes. "I'm nothing that special…"
Lulu smiles. "But you can be," she says. "Come with us. Let's get stronger together. You may have a key, but using it well still requires practice. You can train under our care. Then you won't be alone anymore."
The girl bites her bottom lip, hesitant.
"...can I really?" she asks, fearful.
"Of course," Lulu says. "Now, would you tell me your name?"
"It's…" she looks up, resolved. "It's Yukino. Yukino Agria."