It was close to sunset when Lyon thought it would be time to head back. He'd spent the day resting on the beach with Juvia, for the most part. Once she'd calmed down further, she'd dragged him to his feet and had insisted on going for a swim. Only Lyon's reminder that they had no actual swimwear kept her from running into the ocean. Yet, she'd still blushed and turned away, muttering to herself some more at some thought that had given her.

Either way, Lyon was certain that this day was going to be one to remember. He hadn't actually let himself relax in so long. For too many years, becoming stronger had been his entire focus. Strength had driven him for so long that he'd forgotten about relaxation and enjoying the company of others. Even his team from dealing with Deliora hardly knew a thing about him and he'd spent years with some of those people.

Juvia clung to his arm as Lyon turned to walk back. However, he stopped part way to the village, seeing a boat dragged ashore on the beach. Someone stood near it, letting out a sigh and glancing around. "That is the woman from the tower. Juvia remembers her." Yet, it made no sense, because Lyon knew that woman too. Why on earth had Ur been at a place like that?

Hearing Juvia's voice, Ur turned and blinked at them. "Lyon?" Nodding, Lyon swallowed. Juvia's grip on his arm tightened, but she said nothing. Her eyes narrowed at Ur and that was the most of her reaction. "I didn't expect you guys to still be around this place."

"We actually only just returned." Lyon frowned. "There were some new questions that we'd hoped to gain answers to."

Shaking her head, Ur sighed. "Yeah, I doubt they'll help though. They seem too intent on defending that creator of theirs."

Nodding, Lyon couldn't help but agree given what she knew. "It seems as if things may be different this time. Zeref is with us, helping us seek out an answer."

"Wait, you got him to help you?" Ur blinked at Lyon, before shaking her head and crossing her arms over her chest. "I'm not certain how I feel about letting the two of you run around with someone like that, but I can't say I'm not impressed with you convincing him to help out for a change. Last I saw, he was pretty adamant about how he wanted to handle things."

"Gray managed to convince him. Though, no one was around to see how and he seems to refuse to speak on the matter."

"Juvia has to agree. Gray seems a bit wary of what will happen, should he speak on what occurred between him and Zeref."

"And who is this?" Ur looked over at Juvia, smirking between the two of them. "Did you really run off and get yourself a girl already? I didn't think you'd manage that one so quickly, Lyon."

Heat rose to his cheeks and Lyon turned away. "That—we're discussing Zeref, not my personal matters." He swallowed, preparing to tell her that they weren't exactly together, but Juvia seemed happy to interrupt.

"Lyon is Juvia's, so there is no need to try and gain his affections." Her head rubbed against Lyon's arm and Lyon blinked, his eyes widening. "Juvia will take good care of him and she will not let anyone take her Lyon away from her."

Ur chuckled. "Well, considering I'm probably at least twenty years older than him, I'd say you have nothing to worry about."

Juvia's eyes widened, studying Ur completely now. "You look so youthful. Is there any advice you have for maintaining such a wondrous appearance into old age? Juvia wishes to retain her beauty for Lyon to admire as she ages too."

"Not really. This time it is because of a spell that I thought would be the end of me, but apparently it wasn't." Ur turned towards Lyon, taking in a slow breath. "Anyway, as much as I'd love to stay and keep catching up with you, I really need to stay focused. I'm trying to find someone here." She frowned. "Have you seen anyone new come onto the island recently? Don't have much of a description, sadly, but they were traveling in this direction at least."

Lyon frowned. "If you are looking for the ship that left from the tower, that was us. Zeref insisted upon stopping to investigate that spell, before returning to the task at hand."

"Well, damn then." Ur ran a hand through her hair, turning towards the water. "I got so close to something and it just fell through as well." The girl let out a sigh, placing a hand on her hip. "Sorry, I'm being vague. It's just that I heard rumors about Ultear's guild being involved with that thing somehow. They're after this whole rumored 'keys to Zeref's revival' thing, which is basically a theory that says Zeref's been asleep this entire time. These 'keys' are abstract as hell and vary greatly depending on what you look at. Most commonly though, they need one of his demonic books, hence Ultear's presence here earlier. For the tower, they say they need a fragment of one of his black magic spells that's already been used. Given how few of his spells have a physical presence and how even fewer actually seem to have been used before they were destroyed, I thought that tower would be my best bet to find something on her."

"The tower was never activated. Juvia saw Lyon and his friends ensure that was the case."

Ur nodded. "It seemed like that was the case." She paused, staring out at the water. "Now, I really don't know where to go from here. They need more keys, too — an object from another world, something contradictory, a representation of life, and another of death — the list just goes on. Whoever came up with this theory had some strange ideas on what would actually make Zeref remember who he was."

"They said to get something contradictory?" Lyon blinked, his eyes widening.

Ur nodded, her smile fading. "Yeah, it did. Like I said, the list is a bit vague and could refer to almost anything, which makes it difficult to try and guess where Ultear will be next. I even tried looking up their guild directly and managed to find a few details on their main members, but nothing on their location. Even if I did find it, I'm not certain if I'd go there directly. Those wizards use lost magics, magics that don't exist anymore. Ultear got arc of time from everything I've seen, but there's another one that uses the magic Zeref mentioned as being a lesser form of human enslavement magic, another that has this strange cursed doll, and one that apparently has magic for slaying gods. It just seemed like it might be a bit too much for one wizard to handle, even if I just wanted to talk."

"Magic that works against gods?" Lyon asked.

"Lyon, do you think that might help?" Juvia watched him too, stepping away and growing serious. "Though, Juvia does not think it would. Magic for destroying a living creature does not seem easily adapted to targeting a specific spell."

Ur watched them, frowning. "I thought you were an atheist, Lyon. Since when do you care about gods?"

"Zeref's curse came from the gods, so we are seeking out information on those very gods," Juvia explained. "Juvia and Lyon both hoped that this magic may hold a key to moving forward once more, if the demons of this island are unable to speak of details on how to reach out towards the gods."

"Sounds like you've made some progress since I've last seen you." Ur stared at them, before slowly shaking her head and sighing. "Either way, I doubt this would help much. Ultear is in Grimoire Heart, so getting ahold of that god slayer…you'd have to find a dark guild, just like what I'm working on."

"Grimoire Heart is not a guild to take lightly either." Juvia glanced over at Lyon, narrowing her eyes. "They are one of the Balam Alliance, one of the most powerful dark guilds in existence. No one has managed to stand against one of the big three dark guilds and be victorious as their enemy."

They were quiet for a moment, while Lyon thought about the matter. The very name sounded promising, but really, was it? Like everything else, it was just another form of magic. Maybe it had nothing to do with actual gods and was just a name given to some other form of magic. It was possible, after all. Still, it wasn't as if they had other leads. Gray dragged them back to the island to try and find out where to go next, not because he had an actual reason to expect the answer to be here.

"If you do plan on going after them, I think it'd be best for us to work together on this again." Ur stared at him, shaking Lyon out of his thoughts. "My daughter is with them, so it will help me find her. And, you'll get your god slayer, so we both win."

"There's no way of knowing if this god slayer is truly related to the gods." Lyon sighed, shaking his head. "However, I suppose it may hold some chance of success. If you think you're going to join us, feel free to follow me. The others are in the village right now."

"Wait, don't tell me Lyon is actually slacking off for a change?" Lyon didn't answer, avoiding Ur's gaze. His former mentor began to laugh, shaking her head. "Never thought I'd see the day that you went around being lazy, Lyon. You need to get a girlfriend more often. Seems like it helps you to loosen up for a change."

"I am perfectly capable of continuing my training, Ur. There was simply nothing for me to do in the village," Lyon said.

"Suuure you are." He'd forgotten how teasing Ur could be and it seemed as if that had not changed in the slightest. "What were you trying to improve then? Lip strength?"

This time, the heat was almost fiery on his face. He didn't even realize that Juvia's face was just as red as his, both of them trying to turn away and hide the sudden coloration. "No-not at all! It was a friendly discussion, Ur!" Yet, his master was already laughing, ruffling his hair and moving on ahead of him. Lyon watched her, slowly calming down and shaking his head. Ur hadn't changed at all, despite how much he'd grown. Having her here now brought back old memories far too easily. Falling back into old habits with her would feel far too comfortable, yet Lyon couldn't help but want to do so as well.

Regardless, this almost made him feel like discussing his first girlfriend with his parents. It wasn't the sort of thing he ever expected to experience, so no matter how uncomfortable it was, Lyon almost felt happy to have her teasing commentary on the subject.

"Juvia would be happy to help Lyon improve anything he wants!" Ur had finally stopped laughing, when Juvia only had to amuse her further. The water wizard was smiling, finally recovering from her own blush over the matter. "She wants to help, and if that is what Lyon wants to improve, Juvia is only happy to assist."

"Juvia!" Lyon exclaimed.

Ur laughed again, patting her head with a smirk. "Well, I'd say you've got your work cut out for you, convincing this stubborn guy that you actually mean that." Juvia met Ur's gaze, seeing the woman smirk. "He's a bit dense sometimes and he makes way too many assumptions, but he's got a good heart, alright? Keep at it and I'm certain he'll realize sooner or later exactly how good you are for him."

No. The two of them were not having this conversation, like he was already about to date Juvia. They were just friends and Juvia already had someone else! Hearing this was just going to make him crave her presence even more, despite his own plan to be friends with her and gradually woo her. "Juvia knows he is kind and that he is strong. She will not give up, not when Lyon wants her to remain by his side. Her Lyon was so kind to insist that she stay earlier and Juvia will not leave while he wants her here."

"Sounds like you get it already, then." Ur kept walking next to Juvia, while Lyon was quiet, watching them. "So, are you having fun on this little adventure with my pupil? I imagine you're missing all of your friends at this point if you ended up joining them not long after I left."

"Oh, no, Juvia does not have any close companions to miss." She looked ahead, frowning. "People around Juvia's home always tease her, saying Juvia is strange, weird, and dreary. For as long as she can remember, Juvia always brought rain with her so she did not blame them for their dislike. Her guild accepted her, but she views her guild members as something more akin to close acquaintances. She is closest with Gajeel, but he prefers to be alone."

"That had to have been rough. Lyon was a bit of an outcast as a child too, though," Ur said. "He didn't exactly have much family around when he was younger, so in a way, you could say I raised him."

"You—you are Lyon's mother?"

"Well, the one who raised him. I have a daughter of my own, but we were…separated as well." Ur's smile faded slightly, but she kept going on. Juvia still looked stunned and seemed to straighten, carrying herself taller and more stiffly as they moved forward. "I was pretty much all he had, until Gray came along and asked me to teach him as well. The three of us made our own little family, no matter how much Lyon and Gray will deny it."

"Oh, Juvia knows Gray is important to Lyon. That is why Lyon is helping him, despite what Zeref has done." Ur nodded, her smile fading.

"I just hope they can find an answer before it is too late. What Zeref wants Gray to do…I'm afraid it would destroy both of them." Her eyes flickered towards Lyon. The young ice make wizard avoided her gaze, frowning at her words. She was talking more quietly now, lowering her volume so Lyon couldn't quite hear her. Yet, he wouldn't be that affected by losing Gray, would he?

Knowing how he'd reacted to Ur, Lyon couldn't be certain. Gray wasn't exactly his favorite person on the world, yet Ur was right about them practically being brothers. Not even Gray realized that Lyon viewed him that way, as a member of the small family he'd scrounged together after losing everything. As irritating as the other wizard was, Lyon wanted him around to keep pushing Lyon to be stronger. Without Gray, would he lose his grasp on his dreams again? Would he not have anything to move forward towards?

Sighing, Lyon decided it would be a matter to debate another time. They were back at the village now, after all, and Lyon took the lead to guide them back towards their lodgings in the town. Demons watched them walk past, some in their human form and others openly displaying their demonic appearance. It seemed to vary, which form each of them preferred, but Lyon knew better than to comment considering their numbers.

"Lyon, I've been—" Gray's voice halted, seeing them. Gray was already sitting outside waiting for them and he blinked in surprise as they approached."Ur? What are you doing back here?"

"My search for Ultear led me to a tower in the middle of no where. Apparently, you guys found it interesting enough to investigate too and I followed you thinking you were the ones who made the thing."

Gray's gaze went distant for a moment, wearing that expression he had when he focused on Zeref's thoughts. Then, he nodded, focusing back on them. "Right. That still doesn't explain why you're still here."

"That's something to discuss with everyone, I think." Lyon glanced at the house behind Gray. "Are they all inside?"

Gray shook his head. "They're at the temple. Zeref had…an outburst today. The villagers were a bit tense after that, so he decided it was best to leave. I was just waiting to find you guys so we could all meet up and talk about what the villagers had to say today."

Lyon nodded, watching as Gray rose to his feet. "Juvia does not see signs of this outburst. Was anyone harmed?"

"None of the demons were, at least." Gray started walking and after a moment, Lyon saw where Zeref had lost control. There was a circular region towards the other edge of the village where all of the grass had died away, looking dead and black compared to the rest of town. Juvia saw it as well, frowning at the sight. "I don't exactly know if I should say he's getting better or worse at this rate. The nature of this curse makes it hard to say which side of it is an improvement."

"You think less control is better?" Ur stared at Gray, raising her eyebrows at her pupil.

Shrugging, the dark haired man kept walking towards the temple. "Maybe. At least it means he still cares about life in some form."

"Zeref's curse is dependent upon his view of life. The more he values living things, the more he is forced to kill. Controlling that death magic means he cares little if things live or die, hence the uncertainty on which would be better," Lyon explained, catching her up on what they'd learned of the curse.

"You know, I'm starting to see why the contradictory object was included in that list of keys after that." Ur sighed, shaking her head. "Seems like someone at least knew something about Zeref when talking about all of it."

"Indeed it does." Lyon saw Gray wasn't even paying attention to them and frowned. "He's been speaking with Zeref more often lately. I'm not certain if we should be concerned or not, but it does not appear to be harmful thus far."

His mentor nodded, while Juvia frowned. "Juvia thinks it would be helpful. Gray can understand Zeref better and we can more easily work as a temporary team, despite our differences." She had a valid point, but it didn't stop Lyon from recalling his previous questions about why Gray was being so forgiving towards this man.

"Sorry, got distracted for a moment." Gray paused, turning towards Ur. "Zeref was just explaining a bit to me about how the hell that tower was even related to what Ultear was doing. She seems to be doing something just as pointless as Jellal."

"It isn't as if she realizes any of that. Zeref forced her to forget what occurred while she was here," Ur said.

"Yeah, I get that." Gray sighed. "I just feel sorry for all of these people. Too many of them are trying to do ridiculous things for Zeref, not understanding how useless it all is."

"You feel bad for them?" Ur blinked, frowning at Gray.

The ice wizard nodded. "Yeah. I mean, it's a waste of time and they aren't exactly getting rewarded for what they're doing. It's more likely that they'll get arrested for all of it."

"And you aren't angry with Zeref at all for this?"

"It's not his fault they keep thinking Zeref wants these things done. Zeref never actually claimed to want to be stronger, or involved in any of these plots."

Lyon shared a look with Ur, seeing her brow furrow. "Gray, aren't you forgetting something about him?" Ur asked. The dark haired wizard glanced at her, raising his eyebrows at the woman. "While you are right that not all of these events are directly his fault, Zeref is still directly responsible for many horrible things. It sounds almost as if you want to help him now, like you would be helping and defending him even if it wasn't to avoid using iced shell."

"Maybe I would be." Gray was quiet, frowning. "And even I know how insane that sounds."

"Gray, this man is willing to kill me to push you into doing his bidding. Not only that, but he will keep making demons and causing more death and destruction if he isn't stopped." Ur stared at Gray, narrowing her eyes. "Maybe I haven't spoken to him like you have, but knowing his history is plenty for me to understand that he isn't a good person at heart, Gray."

"If you'd experienced what he goes through with that curse, you might actually understand a thing or two about that history, Ur."

"Experienced it? Gray—"

"We swapped bodies, not that long ago. Gave me a bit of an insight into how he operates, at least slightly." Gray sighed. "I'm not saying he's right to do the things he's done, Ur. All I'm saying is that you are wrong to think he actually wants to cause all of this destruction."

Turning towards Ur, Lyon frowned. Their master was still looking worried, studying Gray closely. "Juvia thinks Gray is getting confused." All of them turned towards her, startled by her interruption. "Juvia has not been here for long, but Juvia does know how easy it is to let sympathy and a desire to help interfere with one's opinions. Gray has been forced into a situation where he must help Zeref and in order to accept that situation, Juvia thinks Gray has found a way to justify helping Zeref without the conditions that pushed him into this mission in the first place. Zeref may have had reasons for what he did and maybe they make sense, but Juvia cannot find it in her heart to so easily say that someone who'd cause so much death is a person deserving of further help."

"You think I'm tricking myself?" Gray narrowed his eyes as Juvia nodded. "Well, I say you know nothing about me and should stay out of my business."

"Gray." Lyon moved to step between him and Juvia, but Gray was already backing off.

"I shouldn't have said anything. Just—forget about all of it, alright?" The man sighed, dragging a hand through his hair. "Maybe Juvia has a point, but I really don't think that's it. If all I wanted was a reason to justify helping Zeref get out of his curse without dying, then I already had one a while ago."

"Are you saying you have another reason to defend him?" Ur crossed her arms over her chest. "Gray, this isn't like you. I know how angry you get over these things. This is the man that made Deliora. You don't just move on from grief so quickly like this!"

"And I'm not the child that refused to calm down anymore either, Ur. Maybe in the past, you'd be right, but right now, you don't know me anymore." Gray began walking again, refusing to look back at them.

"And what reason could you possibly have had to justify helping him beyond this unreasonable belief that Zeref is actually a decent person?" Lyon demanded.

Meeting his gaze, Gray narrowed his eyes. "That is none of your business. Sorry, but it just isn't something I can share so readily."

"Keeping Zeref's secrets isn't beneficial to working as a team, Gray. Lyon only wishes to help and Juvia thinks that teams need to be open and honest with each other to function fully." She paused, frowning. "Juvia's team from Phantom Lord followed that rule and while we were not close friends as Gray seems to be with his team, we operated smoothly and were able to complete tasks. Honesty furthers trust amongst a team, Gray."

"Really? And are you planning on being open and honest about how obsessive you are?"

Something darkened in her gaze. "Juvia has spoken with Lyon about her past and about how she acts as a result. Gray does not need to worry about her causing harm to his team because of this."

"That—"

"Gray, enough arguing about this." Another voice interrupted and they all stopped walking. Further along the path, Zeref stood, looking towards them with dark eyes. "There really is only one individual I'd like to keep this hidden from, for the sole purpose of avoiding potential ill consequences. If you insist upon understanding what rational Gray has for allowing me to live, I see no reason to keep it hidden."

"Oh, and you think we'll just trust you?" Lyon scowled. "There's nothing you've done to indicate a willingness to be open with our team, Zeref. Beyond whatever agreement you have with Gray, you do nothing else to join us."

"Perhaps that is correct." Zeref looked away, before letting out a sigh. "Yet, Gray is still justified in wishing for me to live." He paused, before focusing back on Lyon. "Let me put it in perspective - if you knew that killing me would result in the death of one of your closest friends, would you still wish for my death?" Lyon blinked, his eyes growing wide. "My death results in the death of my demons, Lyon. Being inside of my head has given Gray knowledge of the identity of one that is more hidden than most."

"Like the demons in the village?" Ur frowned, staring at him.

"Precisely like them, although with the capability to become like the others, should the right measures be taken. That is why this demon cannot even know what he is, otherwise he risks being capable of breaking his own seal."

"You have a demon that thinks he is human?"

Zeref nodded in response to Lyon. "You know him as well." Zeref was smiling sadly and he shook his head. "Natsu Dragneel, my most powerful creation and by far the one I'm most attached to. Gray wishes for me to survive simply so that Natsu will live on too. If you cannot comprehend a desire to protect one's friends and family, then I imagine you are almost as heartless as I can be in my darkest moments, Lyon."

Natsu was a demon? Lyon just couldn't see it. The dragon slayer was just too carefree to be considered such a thing and by far too weak to be Zeref's most powerful creation. However, if it was true, it made Gray's sudden defense of Zeref at the tower make far more sense. It had nothing to do with the island, but rather it was his attempt to save Natsu. "You really have just been trying to save your team." Lyon blinked at Gray, who turned his back on Lyon.

"And now that you've dragged an answer out of Zeref, do you mind if we move on? I think we've got plenty of other crap to focus on other than my reasons for wanting to break Zeref's curse."

Lyon nodded, feeling oddly guilty about pushing so hard against this. It just seemed so strange for Gray, but this at least made some sort of sense. Ur, however, still frowned at them, remaining silent about the matter even now. It might be suspicious that Gray was so calm around Zeref, but Lyon could accept that as being part of Gray's attitude towards everyone. He made a habit of snapping at anyone, even his own team, so his interactions with Zeref, even if he was just irritated, wouldn't seem all that different. For now, he supposed the best he could do was just observe and hope that Gray knew what he was getting involved in by defending someone as infamous as the black wizard seemed to be.