Disclaimer: I am not the owner of Fairy Tail

Shouts came to Levy's ears, making her frown and shift. She'd been having such a nice dream…Zeref was back, and she was with him in Edolas again. "—sleeping. Please, try and be quiet for now." Zeref's voice was there too and oddly, him speaking made vibrations against her cheek. Gradually prying her eyes open, Levy squinted in front of her. Black cloth…and white…her mind restarted, and she blinked. She had fallen asleep on Zeref again, exactly like she'd done before.

"Didn't realize you cared, your majesty." A sneering voice made Levy scowl, twisting her head to see Dimaria glaring at him. "Last I heard, you were the one pushing her aside, even after Brandish and I went through all that effort to help her get your attention."

"Help her…?" Zeref frowned, turning towards Levy. Then, he sighed, shaking his head. "Good morning. I suppose I spoke too late to quiet them down?"

Based on the setting sun, it wasn't anywhere close to morning. "Yeah, don't worry about it." Zeref's arm was still around her waist and she could see Lucy and Natsu staring at her, watching closely. Zeref pressed a kiss to her forehead, gently rubbing her arm before shifting to sit both of them up.

"Mavis will be here soon, I imagine." Zeref glanced amongst them, seeing Dimaria and Natsu carrying the demons with them. "And we seem to be set for things to move forward." He glanced over at Levy, raising his eyebrows. "Anything I should be aware of? While I have gathered the majority of your plans from observing…I cannot say I've been able to overhear details thus far."

"You're letting her keep control over this?" Dimaria frowned, narrowing her eyes. "What the hell? Have you gone insane or something? Because this is nothing like the Zeref I remember leaving back in Alvarez."

"He's acting like his future self." Natsu frowned, watching him. "You came back too, didn't you? But later than us, I guess."

"Something like that." Zeref smiled faintly, and Levy realized he didn't plan on sharing all of the details right now. She knew and likely, she was the only one Zeref thought needed to know, considering what had happened.

Smiling, Levy slowly pulled away, letting out a sigh. She wanted this to be done with so she could just spend her time curled by his side, working, reading, or doing whatever with her free time. "Right. I probably should say that I told Mavis we're all agents of Demon Lord Dragneel. Our goal is to just steal magic in general so we don't die and that's why we want her lacrima. Other than that? I don't think I really changed things that much."

"Agents of…" Zeref trailed off, however, Natsu was quick to interrupt.

"Alright! I get to play the demon lord again! Edolas, I command you to give me all of your magic! Mwahahaha!" Natsu did his best to give an evil laugh, bellowing into the sky.

Rolling her eyes, Levy shook her head. "Natsu, we don't actually need that. I just needed a motive for why we want the lacrima."

"Aww, but that was so fun!"

"Tell you what, if things don't turn out, Demon Lord Dragneel can steal the lacrima away himself."

"Alright!" Natsu grinned, while Levy shook her head. Zeref was smiling at him, silently amused as things moved on. "So, when's Mavis gonna show up?"

"Anytime. According to Levy, there wasn't a specific time for the meeting."

"Last time, she did manage to locate us here." Zeref spoke, shrugging. "She will do the same again, I imagine."

With that, they fell silent, glancing around as they waited. Eventually, Dimaria huffed, looking over at Zeref. "So, how the hell did you come back anyway?"

"An earlier variation of Neo Eclipse." Zeref shrugged. "Considering I was dying, concerns over magic deficiency weren't important."

"So, you asked that planning to go back yourself? God damn idiot, making us go through all this when you already had it figured out." Dimaria shook her head. "Well, maybe not. I can't say I would've wanted to deal with your mopey ass if your little lover girl wasn't around to deal with your moods."

"What did you just call Levy?" Lucy glared at her, shaking her head. "I thought you two were friends! That isn't—"

"Lu-chan, she didn't mean anything by it." Levy smiled, shaking her head. Dimaria was harsh, but she usually didn't mean things to be quite so offensive, she'd realized. When they were offensive, it was more so a test for Dimaria to see people's reactions.

Zeref himself seemed to have just brushed it off, likely even more used to her than Levy was. "It had not occurred to me that you would try to do the same. Though, it seems as if things have worked out, all things considered." He paused, glancing down the path with a frown. "And…it appears as if our meeting is about to begin."

"Agents of the demon lord, I see that you've at least started upholding your end of the agreement." Mavis watched them with narrowed eyes, before sighing. "Well, I'd rather get this over with sooner rather than later. There is no telling when someone will realize we're up to something, not with how Jellal keeps sending those Fairy Tail members after us."

Levy smiled at that, but followed her anyway. Their group made their way after Mavis, towards the trees that hid away the lacrima she was using. The trip was still short, and when they arrived, Levy was gazing at a familiar crystal once more. Dimaria focused on it with narrowed eyes, before slowly nodding. "This should be it. I can't imagine anything else actually managing to…remain here." She had paused at the end, likely belatedly remembering they were with Mavis for the time being.

"Yeah, it took all of my efforts to stop your demon lord from stealing it away, back when he took the rest of the magic with him." Mavis nodded, looking towards Levy. "So, what is it going to take to bring them back? Can you do it?"

Glancing at Dimaria and Natsu, Levy nodded. "Place them near the lacrima, please." They did as asked, lying down both demons near the ground. Turning towards Mavis, Levy inhaled deeply. "They will be alive once more, however, you should know that for this revival to function, I need new bodies to place their conscious minds inside of, ones that are already alive." Levy pointed to the ones on the ground. "That is why I brought them with me. I assume you have no issues with this, so long as they both live?"

Slowly, Mavis shook her head. "If that is what it takes to resurrect them, I do not think I will have any complaints." She paused. "However, I will verify that it is them, before I let you leave with my lacrima."

"That is reasonable." Levy took a deep breath, reaching into her bag instead. She pulled out her own lacrimas, the ones storing energy for her use and gradually placed them on the ground. "I've brought energy with me to allow for me to complete this task." Mavis nodded, stepping back. Closing her eyes, Levy began to get to work. It had been a while, since she used this enchantment to bring Zeref back from this world. Yet, she'd devoted plenty of time to it and committed the spell to memory. She had no knowledge of if it would be useful again in the future or not, but she was glad that she recalled it now. First, she started with Zeref. At least with him, she sorta knew what personality to expect if things went well.

She'd drained half of the lacrimas by the time the spell finished, as planned. Edo-Zeref slowly began to sit up, frowning as he awoke in his new body. "Zeref?" Mavis spoke, stepping forward. Her voice shook slightly, her eyes locked on his form.

"Mavis…" He glanced around, frowning. "Where are we? And Levy? What are you…"

"You've met her?" Zeref slowly nodded, and Mavis sighed. "Well, I guess you guys really have been watching our world for a while after all. She's sorta a spy for someone who stole Edolas' magic, Zeref."

"To make things…easier, we have a tendency to take on forms of those familiar to you." Levy glanced at Zeref, smiling faintly. "I have no recollection of meeting you personally, but my face likely resembles one you know. I was told this face belonged to Levy, so that's the name I used."

"Then…Natsu and Lucy…?" Edo-Zeref was frowning at their group.

"Also like her." Natsu grinned, nodding. "But hey, it's pretty cool magic, right?'

"It is. I wonder how it functions. What sort of tool could allow for such a complete transformation? It would have to remain on their person afterwords too, so perhaps something subtle…maybe jewelry or a hair pin…"

"We'll look into that later, okay, Zeref?" Mavis smiled at him. "They're going to bring Zera back for me. They're giving you both back, after so long."

As cruel as Mavis was, Levy couldn't bring herself to be angry with her, for being so desperate. Levy had nearly reached that point herself, with Zeref. It wasn't pleasant to think about, but she knew she'd been willing to use black magic to accomplish her goals. She had no idea if she'd been willing to go farther than that or not, either.

Turning back towards the lacrima, Levy crouched down and got things set up for Zera as well. This one…well, it'd be unpredictable at least. She didn't even know a Zera back in Earthland to use as a reference either. So, she began to work her magic while Zeref smiled faintly at her as she worked. This time, she'd come with enough energy to be prepared for this. She'd hoped that would be the case, to avoid tapping into Fairy Heart while in Edolas. The spell finished, and left Zera reacting similarly to how Edo-Zeref had behaved.

She blinked, before scowling over at Mavis. "Oh, you." She crossed her arms over her chest. "Jeesh, you're still such a crybaby, aren't you, Mavis?" The blond was shaking her head, wiping away tears. She stepped closer, holding out her arms and hugging Zera, who seemed to quickly voice her objections. "Hey! Don't get snot all over my dress, idiot! I…" She frowned, glancing down at herself. "This isn't my dress."

"Sorry." Levy shrugged. "I sorta just grabbed clothes that fit, and didn't really care about style."

Zera raised her eyebrows at that. "Uh huh. So…you just randomly changed my outfit for no reason?" Levy sighed, pressing a hand to her forehead. She knew where this was going already. "You some sort of pervert? See a cute girl and think you wanna see her naked? I mean, I know most people think it's fine if we're both girls, but jeeze, I'd like some sort of privacy to be respected, you know?"

"I really don't think that was Levy's intentions…" Lucy glanced around at them, but Mavis was slowly pulling away, walking towards them.

"You really did it." She gazed at Levy. "I said I'd confirm it was them, but these actions, these attitudes…there's no one else it could be." Mavis nodded. "I'll explain things to them, about all that has happened. And I'll keep up my end of the bargain."

Levy nodded, before reaching into her bag one last time. "Before we leave then…" Levy held out the books for Zera and Zeref. "Not only are they tethered to my life, but they are also tethered to these. Protect them, if you want them to live…and while you may sense magic within them, I advise you not to use it." Levy smiled, tilting her head. "It is deadly, actually, for the user to mess around with it much without proper training. And since you don't work for Demon Lord Dragneel, it isn't exactly possible for you to be taught what is needed to use it."

"I will take care of them." Mavis pressed the books tightly to her chest, nodding. "Take care, and thank you, even if you did act in your own self-interest. I don't think we'll be meeting again, so I wanted to make sure I said that now, before you were gone."

Levy nodded, glancing behind her. "Alright. So, the lacrima is ours then?" Dimaria glanced at Mavis, who nodded. The time wizard grinned, reaching to her hip and unsheathing a sword. "Excellent. Demon Lord Dragneel will be pleased with this, then."

"What…what are you—" Mavis broke off as Dimaria lunged forward, slashing into the crystal harshly with the weapon. It barely cracked, making the time wizard begin again, lashing away at it until the crack deepened, gradually wearing away at the surface. "I thought you were stealing it away…what are you doing?"

"Spacial magic, blondie. Not something you'd understand in this place." Dimaria only smirked, even though it was rather obvious what she was actually doing.

"Spacial magic…?"

"I think…it is meant to be magic that manipulates the atmosphere or 'space' if you will." Edo-Zeref paused, frowning. "But it just seems violent to me."

"That is often how Dimaria operates." Zeref glanced at his other self, nodding with a faint smile. Edo-Zeref's eyes widened, blinking at him. "It is strange…isn't it? Meeting yourself."

"I…yes, very." Edo-Zeref grew quiet. Eventually, the banging of metal on lacrima stopped with a final shattering noise. Levy sensed the burst of magic from it as the structure was no longer capable of storing energy.

"Alright, looks like our job here is done." Dimaria nodded at them. "All that's left is to go back and see if this worked or not."

Grabbing the final lacrima, Levy nodded and stood by them. She glanced back at the Edolas trio, and saw Mavis give her one final nod. With a smile, Levy activated the spell, vanishing away to return to Earthland. Without a reason to seek out magic, she imagined Edolas would finally be able to find peace, and move forward as Mystogan had tried to manage before. Alvarez would find its own direction in that world, and Mavis would be happy with her friends back…and hopefully less cruel and manipulative, though Levy wasn't certain she'd change quite that much. Either way, it was a path opened for their future, just as Levy now had a single path ahead of herself to follow, with no further conflicts on where to go or who to remain near.

After this, all we have left is the epilogue! I'll leave a note there with a few details about what to expect from me soon, as classes are starting and with this story being finished, I'll actually have no current works in progress being posted. Thank you all for reading! I appreciate your feedback so much, and your support.