Fairy May Cry - Devil's Retribution

by Iron117Prime

After seven years, Dante and the rest of Fairy Tail have returned from Tenrou Island. So much has changed since their absence; a guild called Sabertooth is now at the top spot, the forces of the Underworld are starting to become more active, and what's this new religious movement called the Order of the Sword? Times might have changed, but the insanity of Fairy Tail has not.

56. A New Beginning

Hi everyone. Well, here we are! We've finally reached the end of the Grand Magic Games arc and holy crap was it a hurdle! This was the longest arc I've written for the series so far… and it's been one of my most exhausting projects to date. But I'm very pleased with how it turned out, and I'm glad to see that it was so well-received, with people even saying it was better than how the canon series handled it.

Now, there was some confusion regarding my announcement of a break from FMC following the end of this arc, so let me clarify. This is not the end of "Devil's Retribution"! I plan to take that arc all the way to Tartaros, with a couple more additional arcs coming in too. But after this monster of a story arc, I will be taking the next month off from writing FMC. So, this February, there will be no update for this story. And the start for the next arc will be published in March. I don't know how I can possibly make that any clearer.
I thank you all for your patience and understanding, but with an arc like this, with so many characters and their arcs, as well as battles and twists and turns, I need to take a break from this. Once again, thank you.

And with all that out of the way, let's get this final chapter for the Grand Magic Games arc started!

A New Beginning

The city of Magnolia was in a state of celebration. Streamers were hung over the streets, tied from building to building; confetti rained down from the windows on the upper floors, and nearly every citizen was outside. Their spirits were raised high as they were all more than a little excited about the arrival of the guild that they shared their home with. And that excitement only grew as said guild finally arrived.

"I can see em! Fairy Tail's coming home!"

"Over here! Hurry! Come check them all out!"

"Took you guys long enough!"

"We're all so very proud of you! Welcome back!"

"Alright, then! People of Magnolia! Let's give a round of applause to Fairy Tail, winning guild of the Grand Magic Games! You left! You saw! You conquered!"

With that, the entire populace gave an applauding uproar to the arrival to the members of Fairy Tail, who walked down the streets of their home city.

"Alright, now this is a party!" Dante grinned.

"Aye, sir!" Happy cheered.

"We kicked every magic butt we saw!" Natsu smiled like a maniac.

"That makes us champs!" Happy went along.

"Damn, right! We even took down some freaking dragons and saved the whole dang planet, yet again!" Dante added as the three shared a mutual high-five.

"Wow… there are so many people here…!" Lucy was more than a little surprised to see everyone.

"I wasn't expecting this grand of an entrance, it's overwhelming." Erza smiled warmly.

"It makes me so happy to know that Magnolia still supports us." Lisanna was getting a bit emotional.

"Wahoo!" Makarov and Asuka both cheered as the retired guildmaster allowed the toddler to ride on his shoulders.

"Fairy Tail's the greatest!" Gildarts raised his fist up high, earning more cheers from everyone present.

"Not bad. I could get used to this hero treatment." Lady smirked as she and Trish walked side-by-side.

"Ditto." The lightning she-demon agreed as she waved to the crowd.

"Damn… I don't remember getting a welcome like this back home…" Nero commented in surprise.

"It's definitely surprising, but in a good way." Kyrie smiled.

"You'll have to get used to it." Levy smiled towards her.

"Cause we put Fairy Tail back on top, baby!" Gajeel grinned.

"I imagine that helping to fend off an army of dragons probably had a lot to do with it as well." Panther-Lily added.

"I would like to thank each and every one of you for cheering us on at the games." Wendy bowed humbly towards the crowd.

"Come on, speak up! You want people to hear you, right?!" Patty encouraged.

"Not what I was expecting when I thought we'd return to Magnolia." Carla commented.

"Perhaps not, but it is rather encouraging." Modeus smiled.

"Alright, let's party!" Cana already pulled out a bottle of wine.

"Just try not to puke till after the parade." Laxus told her.

"Oh my…" Yukino was in awe of this sort of crowd. "Sabertooth's had similar appraisal before… but this feels different."

"More homey, right?" Mira asked as she walked alongside her.

"Mira! You're the only girl for me!" One guy on the side of the road cheered for her.

"Thank you!" Mira waved, much to Yukino's surprise.

"Hey, isn't that girl from Sabertooth?" Someone in the crowd recognized Yukino, which caused her to look away with some minor embarrassment. Only to suddenly gasp as Elfman picked her up and had her sit on his shoulders.

"Magnolia, say hello to Fairy Tail's newest member, Yukino! She's gonna make one hell of manly impression on all of you!" Elfman hollered, causing other people to cheer loudly. "So, how's the view up there, Cousin? Pretty awesome, right?!"

"I suppose…" Yukino blushed before realizing what Elfman had just said. "Wait… Cousin!?"

"Yeah, we're family, ain't we?" Elfman grinned.

"All that distant relative stuff can get a little complicated, so we'll just keep it simple. Okay, Cousin?" Mira smiled.

Yukino gasped somewhat emotionally as her own eyes wavered. When the word 'family' came to her mind, she instantly remembered her own older sister and the happy smile she gave when they parted ways after the Grand Magic Games. She also remembered the words Sorano told her, about opening herself up to others and meeting new people. And she did… she had met a guild full of incredible people who treated her with compassion and respect. And that included people who were distantly related to her… Cousin… Yeah. That had a nice ring to it. This caused her to smile as her eyes watered.

Gray happened to notice Yukino too and the minute he saw her, a complicated look appeared on his face, something Juvia noticed.

"Gray? Is something wrong?" She asked.

"No… just… thinking about some stuff." Despite getting some assurance on the train ride back home, he couldn't help but think about what Dante said to him. How at some point in the future, he would kill their newest member, as well as another innocent person, and send Rogue down a path of darkness. While he was hopeful that future wouldn't come to pass, and more than certain Dante and the others would stop him if he did go down that path… it was still unsettling to think about.

Juvia looked with concern before reaching out to grasp his hand, getting his attention. "I don't know what exactly is on your mind, and you don't have to tell me if you don't want to, but we just got back from victory at the tournament, not to mention saving the world once again. I think maybe you can afford to celebrate all that at least."

That seemed to work as Gray smiled. "You're right, thanks. Oh… and I'll tell you about it later, if that's alright with you?"

"Of course. You can tell me anything." She smiled warmly.

"Lucy! Hey! You did great out there!" The landlady for her apartment called to her from the crowd.

"Oh, hey! Thank you so much!" Lucy waved back.

"I hope they gave you some prize money, cause your rent's late!" The landlady stated, causing the crowd to laugh while Lucy looked emotionally exhausted.

"Look, it's Erza!" The crowd cheered especially loudly for her. "She beat one hundred monsters by herself!"

"She even took on Kagura and the other top-tier guys in the games!"

"Wait… did she lose an arm?!"

"Oh no!"

"We support you, Erza!"

"Get well soon!"

"Well, this is embarrassing…" Erza noted as she held the wrapped stub where her left arm used to be.

Makarov looked with a heavy expression at the state she was in once more before noticing someone in the crowd, a certain old woman with pink hair that he had history with.

"Porlyusica!" He made his way over to her, getting her attention. "I wasn't expecting you to be in such a big crowd. Here I thought you hated people."

"Still do, and I'm not comfortable with being here." The old woman replied. "But after the effort you put in to winning the tournament, and fighting off those dragons… I could at least offer my support."

"Aw, so you do have a heart." Makarov teased, only for Porlyusica to pull his ear. "Ow! Ow! Ow! Not the ear! You know I hate that!" She let go, while he grumbled.

"I will admit though… as far as humans go… the ones you took in are pretty special." The old woman said with a slight smile.

Makarov smiled a bit at that as well. "Speaking of… I have a favor I'd like to ask you. Regarding Erza…"

"Hey, look! It's Dante!" The crowd cheered loudly for him as he, Natsu, and Happy were at the front of the pack.

"He defeated Vergil all by himself!"

"Natsu's with him too! And I heard how he took down Sabertooth's Twin Dragons at the same time!"

"Those two are probably the best fighters in the whole guild!"

"With them, it's no surprise that they won!"

"You guys are awesome! I cheered the loudest for you!"

"This is incredible. Everyone in Magnolia loves you guys." Happy said to two of his closest friends.

"And I'm eating up every bit of it." Dante put on a confident expression. But underneath it all, he was humbled and happy at the support he and his friends were receiving from this city. He remembered how everyone booed Fairy Tail at the start of the tournament; but now, his family was getting the love and support they deserved. And he couldn't be happier.

Happy, despite his own disposition, was smart enough to see through Dante's cocky façade and recognize how happy he truly was, something that made the blue Exceed himself happy as he smiled.

"Oh hey! Check out this little souvenir I brought back with me! You guys are gonna love this!" Natsu set down the bag he was carrying and tried to pull something out from it. "TA-DA!" He pulled out none other than King Fiore's crown!

"Is that the king's crown!?" Patty exclaimed in shock as she, Carla, Happy, and Wendy looked in pale-white shock.

"You didn't steal it from him, did you?!" Wendy questioned.

Dante and Gildarts both shared a laugh as they saw that, however. "Oh… that's freaking hilarious!" The current guildmaster of Fairy Tail chuckled.

"How the hell'd you pull that off?!" Dante laughed.

"Oops! You weren't supposed to see that!" Natsu put the crown back in the bag.

"They're gonna throw you back in the dungeon, Natsu!" Wendy quaked.

Now Natsu had pulled up what he was searching for. A big and golden trophy, the one they earned from their victory in the Grand Magic Games. "The symbol of our victory! A super shiny cup!" He held the trophy up high, earning many cheers from the crowd and his fellow guildmates.

"I can hardly believe it…!" Droy cried, as did most of the other Fairy Tail members who watched for seven long years as their guild nearly fell apart during the Tenrou Team's absence.

"Sure wasn't easy… but we finally pulled through…!" Jet cried too.

"And after coming in dead last… year after year…" Warren also cried.

"Fairy Tail's number one!" Max and Vijeeter cheered.

"Hip-hip, hooray!" Kinana and Laki also cheered.

Natsu gave the trophy to Romeo and hoisted him up on his own shoulders. "Hold it up high, Romeo! We want the whole crowd to see it!"

"No problem!" Romeo held the trophy up as high as he could. As he did, he couldn't help but shed tears of joy. After so long… Fairy Tail was back on top… and the whole family was together again! In that instant, seven years of hardship… it all felt like a mere blink. Just troubles that were now washed away and put behind them. Finally. The sentiment was shared by his dad Macao, as well as Wakaba, Alzack, Bisca, and Asuka, as they all cheered loudly for everyone too.

Lucy looked in the direction of Natsu as he and Romeo continued to hold the trophy up high. She was truly happy, just as much as everyone else in her guild… and yet… her smile soon faded as something heavy set in her heart.

"Hey, what's wrong, Lucy?" Lisanna asked, coming up next to her.

"Nothing…" She tried to put on a smile. "I'm fine…" However, Lisanna wasn't convinced as she looked at her questionably. Lucy sighed. "I… I can't stop thinking about… what the me from the future said… right before she…" She put a hand over her own heart as her future self's last words and actions played through her mind…

On how she kissed Natsu on the lips and said those four little words… "I've always… loved you…"

"We had an end of the world crisis going on, not to mention processing what went down with Vergil… so I didn't really have a chance to think about it all." Lucy confessed. "But now… now it's all I can think about…"

Lisanna looked with sympathy and understanding. "Well… why not talk to Natsu about it?"

"What? Like, now?" Lucy questioned. "He's celebrating something big! I don't wanna ruin it. Plus, this is a victory for the whole guild. I don't wanna make this about me."

"But Lucy…" Lisanna tried.

"I'll talk to him. Just… not right now." Lucy smiled. "Plus, I want to celebrate too. We all gave everything we had, so I'd say that gives us the right to party, right?"

Lisanna giggled. "'Right to party'? You sound too much like Dante."

"Oh no… don't say that…!" Lucy said playfully, causing the girls to laugh.

"Attention, please!" A town official spoke loudly for everyone to here. "The mayor of Magnolia would like to present Fairy Tail with a gift to mark this momentous occasion!" The official gestured to said mayor, a rather short and middle aged individual dressed in a fancy suit.

"What? A gift? Aw, thanks. You didn't have to." Gildarts said humbly as he walked forward to greet the mayor. "But we'll take it anyway."

The mayor cleared his throat before speaking. "Good members of Fairy Tail, observe. Your gift is to my right." He gestured to the other side of the street. What he showed them, caused everyone in Fairy Tail to gasp in surprise and/or joy.

It was their guildhall! The original guildhall of the Fairy Tail guild that had been their home seven years ago! But while it was condemned long ago… with the non-Tenrou members being unable to keep up with the bills due to their sinking reputation… it looked as good as new! As if it was just recently constructed!

"For years, you have been the pride of our city! That is why we are honored to present you with a newly restored guildhall!" The mayor announced.

All the Tenrou Team members of Fairy Tail smiled with appreciation and joy, while the non-Tenrou members who were left behind found themselves crying with elation. And even the more recently joined members such as Nero, Kyrie, Yukino, and even Patty looked with amazement, seeing this guildhall for the very first time.

Dante crossed his arms with a smile, looking towards the building. "Jackpot."

"It's even cooler than it used to be!" Natsu hollered.

"Aye sir!" Happy cheered.

"That's their old guildhall?!" Nero exclaimed in shock. "It looks like a freaking castle!"

"It looks amazing!" Kyrie looked in awe.

"Yeah! Way better than that lame farmhouse!" Patty smiled.

"It certainly is impressive…" Yukino remembered Sabertooth's guildhall. That was a literal castle that was honestly twice as big as the restored one now gifted to her new guild of Fairy Tail. And yet… this one felt warm and more welcoming… like she can step inside and not feel intimidated.

"Mr. Mayor…" Macao stumbled to him with tears in his eyes. He stumbled so much he almost tripped, but Gildarts caught him with a smile. "Your kindness knows no bounds…!"

All the citizens in Magnolia smiled with pride at the restored guildhall as well. Their beloved guild was now returned and fully complete, and they couldn't be any happier. Even Porlyusica smiled as she looked at it…

But her smile became more of amusement as she looked to Makarov next to her, who fell to his knees as he cried in comic joy.

"I LOVE MAGNOLIA WITH ALL MY HEART!"

However, while the whole city continued to celebrate, not a single soul noticed Sid and Obra were perched at the top of the newly restored guildhall.

"Well now, they seem to be in high spirits." Sid said towards the little demon. "Let them celebrate this victory… for it may be their last." With that, Obra crawled up on Sid's shoulder before the bigger demon hopped away to the back of the building and into a nearby alleyway, disappearing from sight before anyone could even notice that they were there.

---

Two Days Later

After some time to rest and relax, things seemed to be returning to normal in Magnolia. All the hype from the tournament died down and people seemed ready to go on with their lives. Evident by the case of Dante and Lucy walking from their shared apartment building.

"Well, time for us to get back to work." Lucy said to her cousin.

"Yep. Time for you to get off your lazy ass." Dante joked.

Lucy looked to him with a half-grin. "My lazy ass? I'm not the one who pigged out on pizza and strawberry sundaes all day yesterday."

"Hey, I haven't had either since the Games. I get the cravings." Dante replied.

"Compulsion and addiction are more like it." Lucy commented.

The two would soon arrive at the newly restored guildhall. The minute they stepped inside, the pair of cousins stopped to take in the sight. All of their friends and surrogate family were sitting and standing the now bustling building, even a few new members had joined up and appeared to be enjoying themselves quite a bit.

"Look at it." Dante said with a nostalgic grin. "Feels like forever that we stepped in here…"

"Yeah. Between Tenrou Island, the Order of the Sword, now the Games…" Lucy smiled. "It feels like we're coming back home after so long…"

"Come on don't go crying on me." Dante joked.

"I'm not crying!" Lucy exclaimed in comic anger.

"Hey, there they are!" Natsu called out as he, Lisanna, Happy quickly approached them with Yukino right behind them.

"About time you guys showed up! We were waiting for ya!" Happy added.

"Hey guys." Lucy waved, she then noticed her fellow Celestial Wizard among the group. "Yukino. How are you doing?"

"Very well, thank you." Yukino nodded.

"So you're officially part of Fairy Tail, huh?" Dante said with crossed arms and a smile.

Yukino smiled as she lifted up her shirt slightly to reveal the white Fairy Tail emblem on the left side of her waist, where she previously had her emblem for Sabertooth.

"Alright, looks good on you." Lucy smiled. "So, what you think of the guild?" She asked.

"It feels so welcoming." Yukino said as she turned around to see everyone smiling and enjoying themselves. "Everyone here is so lively… And the way they all act and treat each other… the way they all smile… this feels more than just a place to work. It feels more like… a home. It was nothing like this at Sabertooth."

Dante scoffed. "Yeah, you're gonna like our guild way more." He put an assuring hand on her shoulder, causing her to smile. "So, where you staying?"

"I just settled into that Fairy Hills building." Yukino answered. "Everyone there is so welcoming."

"You sure you wanna stay there?" Lucy asked. "The rent on that place is pretty expensive."

"Don't worry, I have plenty of money." Yukino assured. "Aside from all my savings during my time in Sabertooth, Rogue left me with a million Jewel after I left…"

"A million Jewel!?" Dante, Natsu, Happy, Lucy, and Lisanna all exclaimed at the same time with white and circular eyes, much to Yukino's surprise.

"Who just casually hands out that kind of money?!" Happy questioned.

"The kind that's super rich! How come we don't got a million Jewel!?" Natsu complained.

"Well, since we're officially S-Class, we can take tougher and higher paying jobs. So, we'll be raking in that sweet mullah in no time." Dante grinned.

"Speaking of work, we were planning on taking Yukino out for her first job in Fairy Tail." Lisanna said, looking towards Lucy. "You and Dante want to join us?"

"Sure, that sounds great! We were planning to look for work too." Lucy said.

"Where's the rest of the gang?" Dante asked.

"Former master Makarov took Erza out for some kind of surprise he had planned and asked Wendy and Kyrie for their help." Happy explained. "Carla, Gray, Nero, and Modeus all went with them too."

"Lady and Trish said they were going out on a job too, something simple that they said they could handle on their own." Lisanna added.

"Sounds like we got some catching up to do. Let's go." Lucy said as the group of six made their way to the job request board, where Nab was currently looking as well.

"So, what kind of job do you guys wanna take?" Happy asked.

"I wouldn't mind some action." Dante said. "I got some new toys and skills that I could break in."

"I say we get one where I can set some stuff on fire and eat till I drop." Natsu added.

Yukino looked around, considering what they just said. Something that involved fighting… she was no stranger to combat herself, with nearly all of her previous jobs in Sabertooth involving fighting some kind of criminal or beast. It would be something she was familiar with, and something her new friends wanted to do. It also probably wouldn't hurt to have something with a big reward too.

Her eyes happen to spot a small flyer that had the words 'Monster Hunt' on it. "How about this one?" She took the flyer and showed it to all of them.

"'Monster Hunt', huh?" Lucy read aloud.

"Oooh, I like the sound of that!" Natsu grinned.

"What kind of monsters, though? Demons?" Dante asked.

"Doesn't seem to be." Yukino answered, looking over the flyer. "Seems to be a large beast native to Earthland."

"Let's do it!" Happy said. "Between all the demons and dragons we've fought, this should be a breeze!"

"Alright, it's settled then." Lisanna said as Yukino handed her the flyer and they went to the bar where Mira was working. "Hey, Sis! Sign us up for this job!" She handed her the flyer.

"Sure, it's all yours." Mira smiled. "But you'll need to go to Doromud Village for it."

"Never heard of the place." Dante said. "How do we get there?"

"Check out the library downstairs. If you need a map, that's where we keep them." Mira answered.

---

The group went into the library in the basement where they found not only a map on the village, but did a bit of research on the monster that they would be hunting. After reading an encyclopedia, they appeared to have found what their quarry was.

"Wait… the monster hunt is for a mole?!" Natsu questioned.

"More specifically… Maulwurf." Lisanna explained as she read the creature's info on the encyclopedia. "It's basically a mole… that's the size of a building."

"So, a super-giant mole." Happy said.

"Sure, seems simple enough." Dante shrugged. "How far away is this place?"

"Well according to this map… it'll be about a three-hour trip to the village from Magnolia." Lucy answered, looking over a map.

"Three whole hours in a wagon?!" Natsu exclaimed in comic fright.

"If you don't mind, Natsu… I may have a solution for you." Yukino offered as she pulled out a silver key. "Open! Gate of the Winged Horse! Pegasus!" As she held her key out, a magic circle formed in front of it, followed by a flash of light.

When the light faded, a Celestial Spirit had appeared before the group. It was a white furred horse with a long white mane, black eyes, and two enormous, white-feathered wings on its back.

"Whoa! That horse has wings!" Happy exclaimed as everyone looked in surprise.

"I've never seen that spirit before…" Lucy looked in awe.

"Pegasus." Yukino introduced to the group. "He may not be as powerful as any of the twelve Zodiacs, but he is rather fast in the air. And while I was in Sabertooth, and I did jobs alongside Rogue and Sting… if we had to travel rather far, I offered to let them ride on Pegasus to avoid using vehicles because of their motion sickness. Riding on animals didn't make either of them sick, so I imagine the same applies to you, Natsu. You and I can ride on Pegasus in the air, while everyone else takes the wagon below. Would that be alright?"

"Are you kidding me?!" Natsu laughed as he pulled Yukino in a bear hug, much to his surprise. "I freaking love you, Yukino! No more riding vehicles for me!"

Yukino turned red, both at his praise and from the crushing grip of the Dragon Slayer's hug. "I… am happy… to be of… assistance…" She wheezed.

"Okay, okay, don't kill her, Natsu." Dante pulled them apart, while everyone else shared a laugh.

---

Meanwhile, Makarov led the group consisting of Erza, Gray, Nero, Kyrie, Wendy, Carla, and Modeus through the East Forest, but so far hadn't said a word about the reasoning behind it.

"Okay Gramps, what's going on that you had to call us all the way out here?" Gray questioned. "After everything we've learned during the Games, we've had enough surprises to last a lifetime."

"If it's some kind of end-of-the world bullshit or another crazy info dump, can it wait another week or month?" Nero questioned irritably as well.

"Relax, there's no crisis or special revelation here, but I do have something rather special planned." Makarov said mysteriously, turning around with a knowing grin.

"Does he… do this sort of thing rather often…?" Kyrie asked Erza.

"Yes, the former Master likes to play games, often at the expense of everyone else." The redhead replied with a somewhat humorous smile.

Wendy got a good look at the path they were taking. "Wait a minute… isn't this the same path to Porlyusica's?"

"Hmmm, not that you mention it…" Carla looked around herself.

The Sky Dragon Slayer even got a few whiffs in the air, and caught the unmistakable scent that was identical to that of the dragon who raised her. "She's nearby! And… somebody is else is with her. Someone… who smells more like… a tree…?"

"A tree?" Gray, Kyrie, and Nero all questioned at the same time.

"This is unnecessary…." They all heard Porlyusica's voice further up head, as well as a second voice, one that most didn't recognize, one that sounded like it belonged to an elderly male.

"Oh, but I insist. I love plants too and you have such a lovely garden."

"But it's my garden to tend to. I appreciate your wanting to assist, but I want to do it on my own." Porlyusica said as the group soon entered the clearing where they spotted the elderly woman, as well as what appeared to be a humanoid tree facing the direction of the old woman's tree house, and a surrounding garden of flowers.

"And miss the chance to see these beauties? I could never." The tree-man said as he appeared to be pouring a gentle stream of water over the flowerbed.

"Ahem!" Makarov coughed loudly to get all their attention.

"Hmm?" Porlyusica turned around first to see them. "Oh, you're here."

"Miss Porlyusica!" Wendy waved as she ran up with a smile, but soon stopped when she saw the tree-man, who had his back turned to her…. With water coming down from a rather low part of his body. "Um… what are you doing?"

"Relieving myself, of course." The tree-man replied, causing Wendy to turn pale white like a ghost, while everyone in Makarov's group was gobsmacked at that. "Just kidding!" The tree-man turned around to reveal a water pot in his hand. "I was only helping Miss Porlyusica to water her lovely garden."

"How vulgar!" Carla exclaimed as she flew up to the tree-man's face. "That is completely disgusting! Even if it was a joke, it was very inappropriate!"

"Seriously, who the hell are you?" Nero questioned.

"Carla! Nero!" Makarov scolded, causing the two to stiffen as they turned to see the stern look on their former guildmaster's face. "You two are in the presence of Warrod Sequen! He is one of the Ten Wizard Saints, and a founding member of Fairy Tail! Treat him with the utmost of respect!"

That caused everyone to look in genuine surprise. Being a Wizard Saint was one thing… but a founding member of Fairy Tail?!

"Hold on a sec… this guy…. Is one of the guild's founders?!" Gray exclaimed in genuine shock.

"Yep." Warrod smiled. "Not bad for a hundred-years old, don't ya think?" He took a dramatic and stylish pose. "A pleasure to meet all you youngsters."

While certainly shocked, Modeus happened to chuckle. "You refer to me as a youngster. I'm flattered. But I'm still older than you."

"Ah yes. But most of us aren't demons." Warrod laughed.

"Hang on a second…" Nero muttered, realizing something. "If… you're one of the founders of this guild… that means you…!"

"Yes, I knew Sparda." Warrod revealed. "Such a great man, and you look just like him, Nero. I've also heard much about you from Jura." He walked up to Nero and put a hand on his shoulder. "You've got a lot of potential, young man. I look forward to seeing you grow. Who knows, give it a decade or two, you may reach levels even greater than that of your father. The sky's the limit, young man. So do your best."

"Uh…" Nero looked to Warrod's hand, uncertain of how to respond. He just received a great deal of praise from a founder of Fairy Tail, as well as a close friend to his father Sparda… Whoa. He still had trouble processing that he was Sparda's flipping son! So, needless to say, he was rather shocked. "Um… thanks…"

"It is a pleasure to meet one of the founding members of Fairy Tail." Erza walked up to Warrod with a humble smile. "I am honored." She offered her only hand to shake, which Warrod accepted.

Wendy was certainly surprised by this revelation to. Someone who founded Fairy Tail and knew Sparda… but she soon found herself looking towards the garden of flowers that was now set up around Porlyusica's home. She had all kinds of flowers of nearly every color; from roses to violets to daisies to sun flowers and everything in-between.

"Wow! Look at these beautiful flowers! I don't remember seeing these the last time I was here!" Wendy brightened.

"I planted them just before you and your friends went off to train for three months." Porlyusica explained.

"What made you decide to plant flowers?" Wendy asked.

Porlyusica looked away with a slight blush. "I felt my home could use a little more color."

"Grandeeney loved flowers, too." Wendy said as she looked to them with a reminiscent expression. "She even helped me pick up flowers to make a crown when I was little. I wanted to make one for her… but there just weren't enough because her head was so big."

"Well… I'm glad you like them." Porlyusica said.

"Excuse me, while I do apologize for my tone to you earlier Mr. Sequen…" Carla walked up to Warrod.

"Please, just 'Warrod' is fine." He assured with a smile.

"Warrod… I still found that joke of yours to be rather inappropriate, especially in front of a child." Carla said seriously.

"Sorry, but when you're as old as men, you tend to appreciate the little things in life, like a good joke." Warrod said.

"And why exactly are you here, sir?" Kyrie asked.

"Ah yes…" Warrod went to a bag that he had set on the side of Porlyusica's treehouse. "Truth is, I've spent the last couple of days here with Porlyusica, helping her with a project that Makarov had requested for us."

"A project?" Gray questioned.

"What sort of project?" Erza asked.

"This!" Warrod took out a large glass jar that was filled with a green liquid, but what was inside the liquid caused everyone to look in genuine shock.

It appeared to be an arm… made almost entirely out of wood!

"An arm…?" Modeus muttered before his eyes widened in realization as he found himself looking towards Erza, whose own eyes widened in genuine shock herself, having come to the realization herself.

"A new arm… for you… my Erza." Makarov said to the still-shocked Titania.

---

Meanwhile, a single boar-driven wagon rolled on the dirt road which Dante, Lucy, and Lisanna all rode inside, while the Pegasus spirit flew at a casual pace just above said wagon to stay rather close.

"Ha, ha! This is so awesome! It feels good to not puke my guts out!" Natsu cheered in joy as he rode atop Pegasus, holding onto Yukino as she rode up front.

"I'm glad I was able to assist you." She smiled to him. "Right now, this is Pegasus' slowest speed. He can actually move as fast as a train. And since he's a spirit connected to a silver key, he uses considerably less magic energy. So, you can even ride on him for hours if you wanted to."

"You are coming with me on every long-distance mission from now on!" Natsu said as he put a hand on her shoulder. "This is the start of a very beautiful friendship, Yukino!" He said with his typical toothy grin.

Yukino looked in surprise at that. Though she could tell that a part of this was to avoid using vehicles and getting sick, which she would be more than willing to assist with… she could somehow tell just from the tone of his voice, that he meant what he said about a friendship between the two. While she did respect and admire Natsu for his strength, she didn't really know him on a personal level, not at a level she'd quite consider 'friendship'. And yet, he was so quick and willing to offer his own unconditionally. She soon found herself smiling with a slight blush.

"Thank you, Natsu."

Lucy leaned back with a relaxed sigh. "Nice to get a break from all the vomit for once."

"Oh, come on, Lucy. It's not Natsu's fault he gets sick." Lisanna told her.

"Maybe not, but it's still gross." Lucy replied.

"So, what do you think they're doing up there?" Happy asked, looking upward towards the winged horse spirit, and being unable to see his friend or the spirit's owner.

"Natsu's having the time of his life, that's for sure." Dante assumed.

"The time of his life, huh?" Happy grinned. "Hey Lisanna! You'd better be careful or Yukino will steal Natsu from you!"

"Oh really?" Lisanna looked to the blue Exceed playfully. "Tell me, where's Carla, Happy?"

"She's with Wendy and Erza, remember?" Happy reminded.

"Are you sure? How do you know she's not with Lily?" Lisanna questioned.

"Wait… what's that supposed to mean?" Happy questioned.

"Oh yeah, I heard about that too." Dante said in a teasing and mysterious manner.

"Heard about what?" Happy asked nervously.

"Those two are going out on missions together." Dante revealed.

"Wait… what…?" Happy was beginning to sweat.

"In fact, they've been spending a lot of time together, recently." Lisanna went on, causing Happy's body to shake.

"Yep. In fact, I wouldn't be surprised if they were doing more than just missions together." Dante continued.

"Carla does seem to have a thing for older men." Lisanna continued to tease. "And Lily is just so mature. Not to mention, when he transforms and gets all muscly!" She flexed her arms for emphasis.

"Yep, ladies do love a man with muscles. You got any muscles, Happy?" Dante snickered.

"Lily and Carla…? Lily and Carla…!? LILY AND CARLA?!" Happy all but screamed as he was already picturing it in his mind.

Carla and Lily going out on dates, Lily rescuing Carla from dangerous monsters and villains, the two getting married at a church, and even having a litter of kittens, all while laughing and smiling together.

"NO!" Happy screamed. "Not happening! It won't happen! I wouldn't be able to take it! I can't take it! I can't…!" The poor Exceed lost himself so much that he fainted with a ghost coming out of his mouth.

"Congratulations, you two broke Happy." Lucy deadpanned.

"Hey, give the guy a taste of his own medicine." Dante cracked.

"That… and I was wondering…" Lisanna looked to Lucy somewhat expectantly, causing the blonde to sigh.

"No, I haven't talked to Natsu, yet." She replied.

"Really? Even though everything's calmed down?" Lisanna asked.

"Look, it's not that I don't want to talk to him about it!" Lucy began, sounding a bit stressed and emotional herself. "But… we agreed to take it kinda slow! Who could have expected him to learn about what I felt from a different me! Who, by the way, literally died in his arms!" That caused Dante and Lisanna to look away seriously before Lucy looked down somewhat. "I just… I got no idea how he's feeling about all that. What if I say it… and it reminds too much of that… what if I just make it worse…?"

Dante wanted to say some advice to his cousin, something that he felt could help. But… what exactly could he say? She did have a valid point… and he wasn't exactly the expert at this sort of thing. Sure, he was a flirt and something of a womanizer… but something like this…? He honestly wouldn't know what to say himself.

"Lucy…" Lisanna looked towards her. "Maybe you're right about what happened with the future version of you… that was a lot for all of us. But… do you think Natsu is the type of person to wonder what you're wondering? Doubting himself? Thinking that what he says or does is going to make things worse?"

"Doubting himself? Natsu…?" Lucy thought for a minute. She'd seen him cower in fear over Erza, completely understandable… and even shake in the presence of Vergil. But doubting himself? Or thinking that something he would do would make it worse? "No. That's not how he is."

"Exactly. He was always the type to just jump in, especially when someone he cares about is in danger." Lisanna continued. "So, you gotta be like that too. Just, go about to him and be straight forward."

"Really…?" Lucy asked, looking down with a small blush and an uncertain look on her face.

"Don't overthink it, Cous." Dante offered. "For an idiot like him, just say 'what the hell?' and go for it."

"That's easy for you to say. How are things between you and Lady?" Lucy replied.

"This ain't about me." Dante replied.

"But he is right." Lisanna said with a smile. "Think of it like this. Natsu knows now. Maybe not in the way we were hoping for him to find out, but he does. It's all out in the open. So just dive in." She took Lucy's right hand with both of hers. "And I'll be here with you. We're in this together, Lucy."

Lucy's eyes widened slightly before a small smile formed on her face and she hugged the white-haired girl. "Thanks, Lisanna."

"Anytime." Lisanna hugged back.

Dante smiled as he saw this. Good to know Lucy was getting things sorted out. Never quite expected his cousin would be part of a threesome. But hey, a person's relationship is their business. If Lucy would be happy with it, then he'd be happy to.

However, as he gazed out, looking at the road behind them, he gasped somewhat as he spotted two familiar figures crossing the road. One being a short girl with long hair and a pink dress, and the other wearing a dark purple suit with familiar white hair.

"What…?" He sat up straight.

"Dante?" Lucy looked to him with concern.

"What is it?" Lisanna asked as well.

"I just… thought I saw… never mind." Dante rubbed his eyes and looked again to see nothing. "Probably just imagined it."

Oh, but he didn't. Having already crossed the road and entering a nearby forest… the spirits of Sparda and Mavis marched forward, both of whom had very serious looks on their faces.

---

After a couple more minutes of flying and riding, Pegasus came to a stop in the air and gave an affirmative neigh to draw his owner's attention. "We're here?" Yukino inquired. She and Natsu looked out to where Pegasus was looking and gasped in shock.

"Whoa! What the hell happened?!" Natsu exclaimed.

They appeared to arrive in Doromud Village, and the entire village appeared to be completely flooded with mud. Nearly all the buildings were covered up to the roofs, with the tallest ones being the only visible features in this flooded village.

"Let's get the others." Yukino said as Pegasus came down just as their friends arrived on the scene via wagon. "We've arrived, it seems."

Dante, Lisanna, Lucy, and Happy all saw the flooded village with their own expressions of surprise; the girls and Happy being especially surprised.

"Well, damn. Talk about plumbing issues." Dante commented with a slight raised eyebrow.

"That's an understatement." The driver of the wagon told the group as they all got off. "The mud's covering the entire village. I gotta take a pretty big detour to get around it. This is as close as I can get you guys."

"Thanks for the ride, we can manage it from here." Lisanna said as they all got off the wagon before the it was driven away.

"You think people might still be living there?" Lucy wondered.

"Of course not, they probably evacuated when the flood started." Dante said.

"I'd have to agree." Yukino said. "It would be impossible to live in a flooded city like that."

"Why not? With so much water, they could fish to eat." Natsu said.

"That's mud, not water, Natsu." Happy corrected. "You can't fish in mud."

"You sure? Cause I see a guy in a fishing boat heading our way." Natsu pointed downhill, towards an incoming rowboat with an old man inside that drifted across the sea of mud to meet the group.

"Hello, there!" The old man called to them. "You kids must be the folks from Fairy Tail. I'm the village elder, pleasure to meet you."

---

The group was taken to the top of a clock tower to discuss the situation with the village elder, along with a few other villagers who were present as well.

"The Maulwurf did all of this? I know it's supposed to be big, but this is crazy!" Lucy stated as the group got a good look of the state of the flooded village.

"Yes. That god forsaken beast has been tearing up the ground and ruining our lives." The village elder confirmed.

"One of its tunnels got into the groundwater under the village, that'd be what caused the flood." One villager put in.

"So where exactly is this thing anyway?" Dante questioned.

"Somewhere in this sea of mud. It's made itself a new home, at the cost of our own." The village elder answered. "It's very dangerous territorial beast that will attack anyone who comes near it."

"Has this beast… taken any lives?" Yukino hesitated in asking.

"Fortunately, no." One female villager answered, much to Yukino's relief. "Everyone in town evacuated to the hills and set up camp until this situation is resolved."

"What about all the water?" Lisanna asked. "Anything we can do to help there?"

"We think the water problem will solve itself, but not if the Maulwurf is still there. We can't work in the fields like this." Another villager answered.

"Please, we don't care how you do it, just get rid of it!" Another female villager begged.

"Sure, leave it to us." Natsu gave a thumbs up. "Alright you guys, time to go beast hunting!" He said enthusiastically with a flaming fist.

---

The East Forest

"A new… arm…?" Erza looked with shaky eyes at the appendage that floated in the tank that Warrod continued to hold, one that looked as if it were made from a tree.

"Yes, made specifically for you, Erza." Warrod replied with a warm smile.

"After returning to Magnolia, I contacted Warrod and had him meet with Porlyusica to see if there was something that can be done to help." Makarov explained to everyone. "Erza said it was something to get used to and may have accepted the loss of her left arm, but I refuse to leave it at that. To have one of my children spend the rest of her life with a lost limb."

"It took us two days, but we were able to come up with something." Porlyusica added.

"I… First my eye…" She held her hand over her right eye, her artificial eye. "Now this…" Her emotions were coming up as she could hardly believe it. It was one thing for Porlyusica to make an artificial eye for her when she was a child… but to grow a whole new arm…!? "I… I don't know what to say…"

"You don't have to say anything." Porlyusica replied. "I didn't have anything else to do anyway, so this seemed like an interesting way to pass the time." She put on a tone of indifference, but Erza and Wendy both saw right through it, evident by the young Dragon Slayer running up to the old woman with a hug, much to her surprise.

"Thank you… Miss Grandeeney…!" She said with tearful eyes.

Porlyusica looked away with a blush. "I told you not to call me that…"

"Hey, not to sound ungrateful… but are you sure this arm is gonna be good enough?" Gray asked as he and Nero got a closer look at the artificial limb. "Thing looks like it's made out of wood."

"I've seen this red-haired gorilla shatter steel like nothing. Pretty sure wood's not gonna be strong enough to hold." Nero added.

"Don't underestimate the power of nature, youngsters." Warrod began. "I put a great deal of care into this craft. The outer layer is primarily made from ironwood, the strongest tree known to man. I've seen those kinds of trees take some serious punishment. But given how naturally strong Erza is, not to mention the natural flexibility of the human body, I've sewn all the wood together using micro-thin liana vines, which are flexible and sturdy. Trust me, this baby on its own could lift a boulder the size of this house, right here. And break it, too." He gestured to Porlyusica's tree house behind him.

"And what of the insides?" Modeus asked. "I doubt this is just a simple prosthetic like a hook for a hand."

"Right you are." Warrod smiled. "This is designed to function just like a natural arm. The artificial bones are also made from ironwood, with an extra layer of vine-skin for good measure. I've also used hollow roots to act as blood vessels to allow the substance of life to flow through, and added some micro-thin leaves all sewn and strung together to act as the nerves. Once this arm is attached, it should feel the same as every other arm."

"And how exactly do you plan on… attaching it?" Carla asked. "Simply sew it on?"

"In part." Warrod explained. "My Green Magic will allow me to manipulate the arms' contents and I'm precise enough to stitch it onto Erza with little issue."

"As for the rest of it, we need you two." Porlyusica said, referring to Wendy and Kyrie, much to their surprise and that of their friends.

"Us?" Kyrie looked towards the equally shocked Wendy.

"Wendy's own healing magic should help mend the arm to Erza's natural body." Porlyusica explained. "But for it to become truly a part of her, we'll need the Arc of Seraph."

"I'm familiar with that form of magic myself, having done research in the past." Warrod added. "Not only is it incredibly powerful healing and protection magic, when working in conjunction with the natural life of plants with my Green Magic, I believe we may be able to truly have it become one with Erza and it will transform into a true part of her."

Kyrie looked to her own hands as she thought about all of this for a moment. Combing her magic with someone else's? This sounded a lot like when she and Lucy worked together to destroy the Infinity Clock, but this was different. It wasn't as big or powerful of an achievement in comparison, but something far more precise… Though what Warrod said did make sense, plants and vegetation are just as alive as everyone else, so it would be logical to assume that her magic could combine with his. But to create a whole new limb?

"Of course, this is only if you want it, Erza." Warrod told her as she herself was still processing it. "We won't force you to partake if you don't want to."

The redhead looked at the floating artificial limb in its tank again. She had listened to every word that was spoken, explaining not only the arm itself, but the process of attaching it. Looking back at her stub of where her left arm used to be… she initially thought back to her fight against Vergil, as well as his subsequent escape. He was still out there, and still a threat… to both the world and her friends. She could still fight as she was, but with only one arm… her skills would certainly be hampered. More than anything though, as much as she wanted to make peace with this loss… she knew that her friends were greatly affected and worried for her. She loved them for that. And if this could help put their minds at ease, bring her back into fighting condition… and maybe help make her whole again… she would take it.

"Let's do it."

---

Doromud Village

Lucy used a rowboat to sail across the muddy sea, looking for any possible signs of their quarry, but so far had found nothing.

"Anything, guys?" She called out to her friends nearby.

"Nope. South side looks clear." Natsu came in, being flown by Happy.

"Same on the northern end." Yukino rode her Pegasus spirit in the air. "But what about your enhanced senses, Natsu? Can't you smell it?"

"Nah, all this mud's got so many different scents mixed in it, I can't tell what's what." Natsu shook his head.

Dante appeared on the roof of the building just next to Lucy. "Not seeing anything up close either." The red-clad Devil Hunter reported.

Lisanna emerged from the mud in her Take-Over Mermaid Soul form. "Anything, Lisanna?" Happy asked.

"No. I can't see anything down there." She shook her head.

"Hey, speaking of mermaids, think you can summon Aquarius through this?" Dante asked his cousin. "Bet she could clear all this out."

"Probably, but that might be a tad overkill." Lucy replied.

"We'll we better find this thing soon." Dante took out the Crystalbane sword. "Could use a chance to break this in."

"Hey, isn't that Moloch's sword?" Lucy questioned.

"Yeah. The guy may have been an ass, but this thing's pretty cool if you ask me." Dante smirked, especially as he saw his own reflection in the crystal sword.

"Uh, Dante, think maybe you could tone it down with the sword?" Lisanna requested. "I'd rather not kill this thing if we don't have to."

"Why not? You saw what it did here." Dante gestured to the flooded village.

"I know… but it's still a wild animal. It's not like a demon doing this out of malevolence or anything." Lisanna said before looking serious. "If we don't have any other options… then yeah, I understand that we would need to put it down. But if there's a chance that we can just… relocate it… put it somewhere where it won't bother anyone, and nobody will bother it… then I'd rather do that. I know that's a bit more of a hassle but…"

"Sure, fine with me." Dante shrugged. "Not into the animal-cruelty thing, either."

"Yeah, don't worry, Lisanna. I'll be gentle when I punch it." Natsu smirked as he pounded his fist into his palm.

"Pretty sure you don't know the meaning of the word 'gentle', Natsu." Happy cracked.

"Screw you! I can be gentle!" Natsu argued back.

Lucy laughed at their bickering, while Lisanna smiled gratefully. "Thanks, guys."

Yukino heard the whole exchange and took the time to think on it. If Sabertooth had done this job, they wouldn't hesitate to hunt down and kill the Maulwurf the second they'd find it. Heck, she could even see Vergil doing it, albeit making it quick and painless, probably Rogue too… but the fact that Lisanna is considering just relocating it, rather than instantly resorting to any fatal methods, if only as a last resort… really showed how considerate this guild was, for not only each other's feelings, but for other living creatures too. She found herself smiling at that.

Soon, the mud began to shake, getting all their attention with Lucy almost being rocked out of her boat as everyone found themselves looking to a rather large creature that was emerging from the mud.

It was a massive mole-like creature, with a dark purple furry hide. It had long massive claws on its large and bulky arms with yellow and red eyes. It's mouth also had very thick teeth. It gave a loud and booming roar that shook up most of the area.

"Hold on… this is the Maulwurf?!" Lucy exclaimed.

"Pretty big, but I've seen bigger." Dante smirked.

"I call dibs on first hit!" Natsu said as Happy flew in close.

"Natsu, wait!" Lisanna called to him, but he was already there.

"Fire Dragon Iron Fist!" Natsu flew in to punch a fiery fist into the Maulwurf's left cheek, which did disorient it briefly, but the creature turned around and retaliated with a quick swipe of its claws to send both Natsu and Happy flying and skipping across the mud.

"That thing just took a direct hit from Natsu and it's still going!" Lucy exclaimed in shock.

"It must have a rather thick hide for protection!" Yukino deduced.

"Most underground animals do." Lisanna said. "We gotta disorient it, first! I'll go in!" Lisanna swam at high speeds in her mermaid form, gunning straight for the Maulwurf as it swam through the mud, moving in surprisingly quick for its enormous size. When the gap was closed, the Maulwurf lifted its right claw to strike at her…

"Mermaid Typhoon!" Thrusting her hands forward, Lisanna sent a whirlwind of water straight into the Maulwurf's face to knock it off balance, sending it towards the building that Dante was on.

"Someone likes his mud baths. But I'm more into rock-candy myself." Dante swung Crystalbane at the mud, creating a long and circular trail of pink crystals which the Maulwurf landed at back-first. The crystals then exploded to push it forward, where Yukino was waiting in the air, still riding her Pegasus spirit.

"Open! Gate of the Two Fish! Pisces!" With a wave of her gold key, Yukino had summoned her dual fish spirits, both in their respective fish forms. "Ensnare and bind that creature, but do not kill it!" She ordered.

With that, the two enormous fish-spirits flew down into the mud and swam directly for the Maulwurf as it regained its senses. When it did, the pair of spirits quickly ensnared and entangled themselves all around the creature, making sure to bind its arms to their sides.

"My turn! Open! Gate of the Golden Ram! Aries!" With a swipe of her own key, Lucy had summoned Aries to her side.

"Um… I'm here, Miss Lucy. How can I help?" The sheepish girl spirit asked.

"See that giant mole-thing? Use your wool to try and calm it down! We're trying to get it away from the city, not kill it." Lucy instructed.

"Alright. Wool Bomb!" She threw out her hands to send a wave of pink magical wool, which had wrapped around the Maulwurf, seemingly putting it in a relaxed state while Pieces still kept it bound.

"Awesome, way to go, Aries!" Lucy cheered, causing Aries to smile and blush.

"Huh, not bad for non-lethal fights." Dante commented with a smirk.

"Come on, let's get it out of here before…" Lisanna began, only to look in surprise to see the Maulwurf sink deep into the mud, pulling Pisces down with it, and escaping Aries' wool. "What…?" She and everyone else looked in surprise.

While under the mud, the Maulwurf became far more nimble and flexible, allowing it to slip out of Pisces' grip, grab both of them with its enormous claws and emerge from the mud with a roar, much to the shock of everyone present.

"It escaped Pisces' binding!?" Yukino exclaimed. The Maulwurf threw the light-skinned fish towards the building that Dante was on, forcing him to leap away while it threw the dark-skinned fish towards the boat that Lucy and Aries were both on, sending them tumbling in the mud. It then quickly moved to slap Yukino and Pegasus out of the air, knocking them both to the mud too as Pegasus was forced to retreat to the spirit world.

"Lucy! Yukino!" Lisanna gasped in shock.

"Hey mole-boy!" Natsu called out as he and Happy came back in. "Time for round two!" He pulled back his flaming punch just as the Maulwurf pulled back one of its own claws to swipe at Natsu… which he timed to throw his punch out to intercept it. The resulting wave of fire did push the Maulwurf back and seemed to give Natsu an opening. "Get me up in its face, Happy!"

"Aye, sir!" Happy said as he flew Natsu upward, allowing the Salamander to throw physical punches across its face and push it back. "We'll keep this guy busy! Help the others out of the mud!" He called to Dante and Lisanna, both nodding in understanding.

Lucy had treed the mud as she pulled Aries up. "You okay, Aries?"

"I'm fine…" The spirit assured.

"Where's Yukino?" Lucy looked around.

"I'm over here!" Yukino emerged from the mud too, appearing some distance away as Lisanna swam up to her.

"Where are your spirits?" Lisanna grabbed Yukino and helped her swim to meet up with Lucy and Aries as the spirit began to create a large mass of wool to climb up and regroup on.

"I sent Pisces and Pegasus both back! Pegasus isn't made for combat and can't take too many hits." Yukino explained. "And I know that Pisces can probably do more in their humanoid forms, but you said you wanted to avoid any non-lethal techniques on that creature, and I'm not sure if I can have them hold back enough for that."

"I appreciate that, Yukino. But your safety is important to me too." Lisanna said as they reached the wool island and climbed up with some help from Lucy and Aries. Once Dante saw they were all safe, he ran and jumped across the rooftops and trees to assist Natsu.

Happy pulled Natsu down to avoid the swipe of its right claw and then back up to avoid that of the left claw, coming up above its head as Natsu brought both his fists together and slammed hard on its head. This did shake it quite a bit, only for the creature to recover and try to bite at them, but Happy quickly pulled him back.

"Whoa! That thing's got some mighty big teeth!" Happy commented as he flew his friend backwards with the Maulwurf swimming in pursuit.

"And some thick skin, too! Even when I'm holding back, that should have done some damage!" Natsu stated.

The Maulwurf looked like it was about to catch up to them, appearing just in front, emerging from the mud like a shark from water with an open mouth, causing the Dragon Slayer and his Exceed companion to scream…

Only for a wall of pink crystals to separate the giant mole-like creature from its supposed prey. The Maulwurf ended up biting on the crystals before they exploded, knocking the monster back as it landed back-fist in the mud, exposing its belly before Dante appeared via his Trickster style and landed on its belly, swing Crystalbane in a circular motion, creating a circular wall of crystals from the mud that appeared to cut off its escape routes.

"They say when dogs show their belly, it means submit." Dante commented, pointing his new crystal sword to the Maulwurf's face. "This makes me the alpha, right? So be a good boy and just roll over."

However, the Maulwurf growled as it let itself sink into the mud, causing Dante to raise an eyebrow, even as he was pulled under. The Maulwurf then swiped its claws at the base of the crystals, which later caused them to explode, sending Dante flying up through the mud. He would have fallen back down, but he used his Trickster style to kick himself from a magic circle in the air and fall in the trajectory of a nearby tree. He caught the branch and swung himself up to land on it.

"Clever bastard…" He commented.

"Whoa, what just happened?" Natsu questioned as Happy flew him close by.

"Thing saw what the crystals could do and had them explode to blast me off and cover its own escape." Dante said.

"Whoa. That thing's pretty smart, huh?" Happy said in surprise.

"It got away?!" Lucy questioned as Aries used her magic to move the wool island, as well as everyone on it, closer to the tree.

"Yeah. Hate to say it, but that thing's got homefield advantage." Dante said. "This might be harder than we thought."

"What are you guys up to?" Turning towards a nearby hill on the village's permitter, the group found Lady, as well as Trish, looking at them questionably.

"Playing around in the mud? Aren't you guys a bit too old for that?" Trish asked playfully.

"Trish! Lady!" Lucy was elated to see them.

---

East Forest

Everyone had gathered together in Porlyusica's house. Erza laid in a bed, a blanket covering most of her body, mostly for privacy's sake as she had to get undressed for this procedure. A sheet had covered the entrance way to the door of the small room as Wendy, Kyrie had joined Warrod and Porlyusica inside; while Makarov, Gray, Modeus, Carla, and Nero all stood outside in the main room with serious expressions.

The stub of Erza's left arm was laid outward as Warrod held the artificial limb in his hands. "Is everyone ready?" He asked.

However, Kyrie and Wendy both looked rather nervous, evident by their shaking eyes. "Erza…? Are… are you sure…?" Wendy asked. "I mean… I know my healing magic has… done some impressive things but… I've never tried anything like this before! What if I mess up and make it worse for you?"

"You won't." Erza told her.

"How do you know?" Wendy questioned. "What if I…?"

"Wendy." Erza spoke firmly, looking to her a smile. "You can do this. I know you. I trust you completely."

The young Dragon Slayer's eyes shook at that. She knew that Erza trusted her on the battlefield, but did she really trust her with this? She felt a touch on her head and looked up to Porlyusica who had a small smile on her own face. This seemed enough for her… as while she knew this wasn't the same person as the dragon who raised her, being silently supported by her Edolas counterpart made her feel that Grandeeney was still with her. And that gave her the resolve she needed.

"Okay." She nodded.

"And Kyrie, that goes for you too." Erza told the other girl. "I know we've only known each other for a short time, but you're a part of this guild, a part of my family." She smiled. "So I trust you too."

Kyrie took a moment to let that process, the girl took a deep breath to calm her nerves. That's right. She's a part of Fairy Tail now. And ever since joining the guild, she's learned all kinds of new things, become stronger, so much so that she can actually fight alongside them and not be as helpless as she was before. And she would help her friend here too.

She reached out to grasp Wendy's hand with a smile. "Let's do this."

"Alright." Wendy smiled back.

"We're ready." Kyrie said to the two.

"Erza?" Porlyusica wanted to make sure she was prepared as well. "We don't believe this procedure to be too painful. But if you wish… I could administer a sedative."

"It's alright." Erza assured. "I took the pain when I lost my arm… I can take it for the reattachment."

"Wow, way to make us feel nervous again…" Kyrie muttered for humor's sake.

Warrod laughed. "Are you sure you're even human, Erza?" He then got serious. "Okay, here we go." He placed the artificial limb on the bed, right beside the stump of Erza's left arm as Porlyusica undid all the bandages. Once they were done, Warrod held his hands over the artificial limb and used his Green Magic to grow a series of tiny roots and vines from the limb to stretch them over to Erza and sew it into her joint, causing her to wince somewhat.

"Use your magics. Now." Porlyusica told Wendy and Kyrie.

Without a second of delay, Wendy put her hands over the roots, between the joint and the artificial arm and applied her own healing magic while Kyrie did the same to the artificial arm itself. A bright mixture of white and cyan light shinned throughout the entire house… so much so that those outside the room had to shield their eyes somewhat, with even the lights shinning from outside the windows of Porlyusica's tree house.

---

Doromud Village

After joining Dante, Natsu, Happy, Lucy, Lisanna, and Yukino on a rooftop of the flooded village, Lady and Trish were briefed on the situation.

"A giant mole, huh?" Lady questioned. "I'm surprised you're taking so long to get rid of this thing, Dante. Compared to all the demons you've fought, this should be a breeze."

"I actually told everyone not to kill it." Lisanna quickly interjected. "I'd rather not unless we have to."

"That and the thing is smarter and slipperier than we thought." Dante added. "It moves through the mud like a shark in water."

"It's hide is pretty tough too." Happy added. "It took several of Natsu's hits and was only briefly disoriented at most."

"Oh, a tough little sucker." Trish commented. "Alright, we'll help."

"What about your guys' job though?" Lucy asked.

"We just got done with it." Trish explained. "We were on the way back, and since we're here, might as well help."

"So, long as I get a cut of the pay." Lady said.

"No fair! You got a job already; this is our gig!" Natsu complained with flames in his mouth.

"Hey, how about a little respect to the ones bailing you out!" Lady shouted at him.

"I didn't ask for your stupid help!" Natsu shouted back.

"Please, don't fight!" Yukino begged.

"Aye, I'm not sure the village would survive a brawl between you two." Happy agreed.

"Okay, so how exactly are we supposed to find this thing?" Trish asked, looking out towards all the mud. "It swims through the mud, it could be anywhere down there."

"I might actually have an idea." Yukino raised her hand.

"Alright, what is it?" Dante asked, surprising Yukino. "What?"

"You… want to hear my idea?" She asked.

"Yeah, you said you had one. So, let's hear it." Dante replied.

Yukino looked away somewhat. "Sorry it's just… back in Sabertooth… any ideas I had were often overlooked or shot down because the guild tended to favor the strategies and ideas proposed by the stronger members. Vergil or Rogue would occasionally listen to my ideas, but more often than not, I was rarely listened to."

"Well, this ain't Sabertooth." Dante said immediately. "Here in Fairy Tail, everyone's opinions count. So, let's hear your idea."

Yukino looked towards all of them as they all had encouraging smiles on their faces, waiting to hear this idea of hers. She smiled, somewhat emotionally, before standing up to explain her idea to them.

"Alright… There are three steps to this plan." Yukino began. "First step, Trish uses her lightning on the mud itself. Mud conducts electricity, so it should send a charge that will draw the Maulwurf out in the open. And given its own thick hide, it's unlikely it will sustain any permanent damage, but the sudden shock should still force it out." She took out one of golden her keys. "Step two, I use Libra's power over gravity to pull it out of the mud completely and hold it in place in the air, so it can't withdraw. And finally, step three, we hit it with sufficient force to knock it unconscious and then we remove it to later release into the wild where it won't harm anyone else again. Well, what do you think?"

"Yukino… that's brilliant!" Lucy said with a wide smile.

"For real, that's the smartest idea I heard all day!" Lisanna agreed enthusiastically.

"Instead of wasting our time searching for it, we get it to come to us." Lady smiled.

"And there are a lot less risks this way too. Not bad." Trish smiled as well.

"As long as I still get to punch it, I'm good." Natsu smirked with approval.

"Ah yeah! Let's do it!" Happy cheered.

"Well, looks we got a plan. Way to go, newbie." Dante smiled and nodded towards Yukino.

The Celestial Wizard herself felt her spirits being lifted. Not only was her idea listened to, but they agreed to do it without a second thought! They trusted in her and her plan! She was certain that at least one of them would express some doubt, and fearful of her idea getting shot down. But it wasn't. They listened and agreed. She found herself smiling once again, being reminded just how different and welcoming this new guild was compared to her old one.

"Alright. Let's do it." Yukino stood up.

With that, Trish slid slightly down the roof and came close to the mud. She stuck her hand into it before activating her own demonic power, making sure to use a low charge to not completely fry the mud or the creature inside.

This sent a charge of white lightning through the entire pond of mud that had flooded most of the village. It had spread rapidly in almost the blink of an eye. Two seconds later, the lightning vanished as the group waited in anticipation.

Their wait lasted only about four seconds before the area began to shake, the mud quaking and waving right in front of them… just before the Maulwurf emerged with a roar.

"There's our boy!" Dante grinned.

"Open! Gate of the Balance! Libra!" With a swing of her golden key, Yukino had summoned Libra to her side.

"I am here and at your service!" Libra proclaimed with a bow.

"Your target is the beast in front of us!" Yukino commanded. "Use your power to pull it from the mud and keep it suspended in the air!"

"By your command." Libra danced and twirled her scales, activating her gravity magic and focusing it on the Maulwurf. With that, the creature was pulled directly out of the mud and hauled straight up into the air. It then hovered in place. "I am rapidly shifting between increasing and decreasing the target's center of gravity to keep it suspended. However, I cannot maintain this state for very long."

"We hear ya. Time to move in!" Dante said as he and the rest of the group leapt and went on the attack. "Hit it all at once! Let's not waste any time!" Dante held the flat of Rebellion.

"Fire Dragon Iron Fist!" Natsu pulled back his flaming fist.

"Steel Devil Nemean Cestus!" Lady's fists converted into their lion-gauntlets.

"Take Over: Rabbit!" Lisanna had transformed into her giant rabbit form and prepared to unleash a powerful headbutt.

"Max Speed Attack!" Even Happy joined in, preparing to give a headbutt of his own.

Trish had also brought her hands together to create a large ball of lightning, which she prepared to unleash in a single attack. Even Lucy spun the Morning Star rapidly, ready to set it loose.

All the attacks were gunning straight for the giant and muddy Maulwurf that Libra continued to keep suspended. But as Yukino watched, a glimmer of light reached her eye, causing her to squint before looking to where the source of the light was coming from. Light from the sun… being reflected off something around the Maulwurf's neck. Something metal… and shiny…

Wait… Was that a…

Yukino gasped. "Oh no…! Libra, send it back into the mud! Now!"

"As you wish!" Libra obeyed and increased the Maulwurf's center of gravity, to the point where it fell back into the mud rapidly, much to the shock of everyone else…

Right before they all collided into each other, their heads butting against the other before falling into the mud themselves.

"What the hell was that for?!" Natsu yelled, butting heads with Lady. "Do I look like a giant mole to you?! Why'd you hit me?!"

"I didn't hit you, dumbass! You ran into me!" Lady yelled back.

"Guys, please stop!" Lucy pushed them apart.

"Is everyone okay?!" Yukino called to the group as they swam their way back to the roof.

"Grossed out… but yeah." Happy said in a whine.

"What happened?" Lisanna asked. "Did the Maulwurf escape?"

"No, I had Libra release it." Yukino answered, much to the group's shock.

"What?! The hell'd you do that for?" Dante questioned.

"Because I saw a collar around it!" Yukino revealed, gesturing to her own neck for emphasis.

"A collar…? What…?" Natsu questioned.

"What kind of monster wears a collar?" Happy asked.

Lisanna's eyes widened in realization. "Because it's not a monster! It's a pet!"

"A pet?!" Nearly everyone else exclaimed at the same time.

---

After regrouping with the village elder at the top of the clock tower again, Yukino had told him what she had saw and her theory. This had left the village elder more than a little surprised.

"A collar…? But… it couldn't be… Unless… Oh. How could we not have seen this?"

"Seen what?" Happy asked.

"You were right… that Maulwurf was indeed a pet." The village elder confirmed. Now everyone was paying close attention as he began his story. "Our village was once home to a great healer, who would treat not only all the people who lived here, but also any people who passed by our village, and even wild animals. She was a kind and generous soul. One day, she stumbled upon that same Maulwurf when it was a mere baby. Its mother had killed by hunters, leaving the poor thing all alone. Because it was so young, it was unable to feed itself and had grown sick. So, the healer took it in and nursed it back to health. During this time, the baby Maulwurf imprinted on the healer. Once it was healthy, the healer realized that she couldn't release the baby back into the wild, growing too attached to her. So, she adopted it. She also knew that as it would grow older, the Maulwurf would develop the instinctive need to dig and burrow… so they moved away. Though she did keep a reasonable distance from the village… far enough so that the Maulwurf wouldn't cause any trouble, but still close enough to keep providing aid to all the villagers."

"Aw, that's so sweet." Lisanna smiled.

"So why is it causing problems for you guys if your village was friends with it?" Natsu asked.

The elder looked down. "Unfortunately, the healer passed away from old age a couple years ago." That caused everyone to look in surprise. "I can only assume that the beast is now acting out because it feels all alone, with its caretaker no longer there to provide for it."

"I think I understand…" Yukino said in realization. "It's not acting out of rage or getting territorial… it's in grief."

"Yeah… pretty sure most of us here can understand a thing or two about that." Dante said with a serious and deep look in his eyes; with Lucy, Lady, and Natsu having similar expressions themselves.

"Grief or not, it's still causing problems for this village, so we have to deal with it." Trish said.

"So, what do we do now?" Lady asked.

Yukino sighed before speaking to the group again. "Listen… I realized that my initial plan failed, but I believe I may know of a way that can…"

"Hey, I'm gonna stop you right there." Dante raised his hand slightly, which only caused Yukino to look down, having a feeling that she was no longer going to be listened to for this job. Heck, she wouldn't be surprised. "We don't need any 'will you give me another chance?' speeches. Just tell us what your plan is."

Yukino gasped as she looked up to Dante and everyone else in surprise. "B-but… my plan didn't work…"

"Maybe not the way we hoped, but you noticed something that the rest of us didn't. Now we've gained some useful info because of that." Dante said. "Not only that, but it also sounds like you already have a new plan in the works. And even if the first plan did get messed up, which it didn't, that doesn't mean you're not any less fit for this. Look, I know that it's gonna be a bit of a transition, but we're not Sabertooth. Like we said, everyone's opinion here counts. Just speak up, and we'll always hear you." Dante ruffled Yukino's hair, much to her surprise. "So… lay it on us. What's your new plan?"

Looking past Dante, Yukino saw all the encouraging and smiling faces of Natsu, Lisanna, Lucy, Happy, Lady, and Trish. Clearly they all felt the same way he did. She happened to blush from all of it as she found herself smiling again, her spirits continuing to rise.

"Alright… so, this plan will be very similar to the old one… primarily where we use Trish's power to shock the Maulwurf out into the open." Yukino began. "But that's the easy part. The hard part, involves all of you, using all your strength to hold it down."

---

Yukino, Trish, and Libra all stood on a rowboat, gliding through the muddy sea once again. Trish stuck her hand in the mud as she looked to the Celestial Wizard and her spirit, both of whom nodded before Trish let loose her white lightning again, briefly surging through all the mud that had flooded the village.

Once again, it was silent for only a few seconds before the entire area rocked, the boat shaking as all three did their best to maintain their balance before the Maulwurf emerged in front of them with a roar.

"Libra!" Yukino commanded, the spirit instantly twirling her scales to activate her Gravity Magic. In that instant, all the gravity surrounding the Maulwurf nearly vanished as it was pulled up from the mud. "Now! Get it away from the village!"

"Per your command!" Dancing once more, Libra had increased the Maulwurf's center of gravity was rotated to the side, leading to the giant mole-like creature to be sent hurtling away from the village and closer to the road that they had previously arrived on, all on solid ground.

"You guys are up!" Trish shouted.

In that instant, the ground behind the Maulwurf broke apart, courtesy of Virgo, having dug a hole that was big enough for herself, Lucy, Dante, Natsu, Lisanna, Happy, and Lady to all hide in.

"Restrain it! Go!" Lucy commanded as everyone moved in. Dante was the first to act, using his Quicksilver and Trickster style to appear in the air directly above the Maulwurf and shot himself down using those same styles together, raising Rebellion up high before slamming the flat on the Maulwurf back, smashing it into the ground.

While it was briefly disoriented, Natsu and Lisanna came in from the creature's right side and grabbed onto its right arm with Lisanna using her Dragon Soul Take-Over to increase her strength as both held the right arm down. Virgo appeared on the left side alongside Lady and Lucy, the latter using her Fleuve d'etiles whip to wrap around the left arm and pull back, while Lady and Virgo held the left arm itself. Happy provided Lucy with some back up by pulling on her back to further pull the whip down and keep the left arm pinned. Dante remained on the Maulwurf's back, and after putting the Rebellion away, wrapped his arms around its neck to pull the head back and keep it from biting down. The creature thrashed about in their grip, but was unable to escape from all their combined strength.

Yukino, Trish, and Libra quickly arrived back on the shoreline via boat. "Libra, be prepared to use your Gravity Change should it escape their grip." Yukino instructed.

"As you wish." Libra nodded before Yukino stepped forward while Trish remained cautiously behind her, ready to quickly pull her away if things got too dicey.

"I don't want to fight you! I know you're in pain!" Yukino tried to speak to the Maulwurf itself, but it roared in defiance directly at her. But despite that, and the creature's intimidating appearance and demeanor, she didn't waver. She took a breath and did the one thing that nobody would expect her to do…

She sang.

"Though the clouds cover the sky tonight, we still shine for you, our dear." Yukino sung to the Maulwurf, but it continued to struggle in the combined grip of all the present Fairy Tail members, even as Yukino stepped forward. "The stars will always shine with light. We are still near; our love is here." This seemed to get the Maulwurf's attention as it stopped thrashing, but everyone kept a hold of it just in case. "Though you cannot see… and feel so alone… oh our darling, do not fear. Hold on to what you've always known… we are still here, our love is here." The Maulwurf looked to Yukino as its eyes slowly widened, the girl now right up in its face. "Even if we are not seen, the answer in your heart is clear." It gave a mournful groan as Yukino looked to it with a sad smile. "We are the stars… the light in your heart. We are still near, our love is here."

The Maulwurf appeared to calm down as Yukino put her hands on its snout. She then looked down to its collar and saw the name engraved on it.

"'Velvet'… That's your name?" She asked, the Maulwurf giving a mournful groan with tears in its eyes. Only one person called it that… Yukino looked up to Dante and gave a nod, to which he nodded back before signaling to everyone to let go, which they all did as Dante slid off, but still kept close, just in case. "You were taken in by a kind soul when you were just a baby… She raised you… loved you. But now she's gone… and you feel so much pain." She sniffled. "I know that pain… because there are people that I've lost too. And I miss them… every single day. But one thing I've learned recently… is that even though your loved ones may gone… they are still with you, so long as you don't forget them." She looked to the Maulwurf's eyes as a tearful smile reflected in its own. "Just because you cannot see the stars… that does not mean they're not there. The love of your owner is still here… even if she is not. And she doesn't have to be the only light in your life… If you just open your heart up to others… you'll find someone who can make you feel just as loved as you did before." She kissed the Maulwuf on its snout.

With that, the mole-like creature gave a small groan before it relaxed and lowered itself to the ground. With that, everyone else relaxed as they knew the threat had passed.

"That was so beautiful…" Lucy was quite emotional herself.

"Oh man, I'm getting misty-eyed over here…" Happy sniffled.

"Nice pipes, by the way." Lady complemented.

"Seriously, you have a beautiful singing voice, Yukino." Lisanna told her with a smile.

"Thank you." Yukino smiled, even if it did fade only slightly. "My parents used to sing me that lullaby when I was little. And when I lost them, and thought I'd lost my sister, I used to sing it to myself… if only to hold onto the memory." Everyone looked to her with sympathy before she smiled again. "But to sing it to someone else… someone who is in pain and needs healing… It feels good."

"Yeah, I bet it does." Dante gave her a nod. "Nice job."

Yukino smiled as she nodded back, but was taken off guard as Natsu wrapped his arm around her shoulder buddy-style.

"Heck yeah, that was awesome! You're gonna kill it in Fairy Tail, Yukino!" Natsu complemented with a laugh and his typical toothy grin, which only made Yukino's smile grow brighter. "Now, bring out all your spirits, cause I wanna fight ya!"

In that instant, everyone face-palmed, while Yukino just looked in a comic mixture of confusion and mortification.

"Way to ruin the moment, Natsu." Lucy chastised.

---

Sometime later, all the present members of Fairy Tail were outside the village with the now calmed Maulwurf as Dante presented them all a bag full of money. "Alright, job's done." Dante said to everyone.

"What about the flood?" Lady asked.

"Villagers said that it would solve itself in a couple of days." Dante replied. "It's their turf, they know it better than us, so we'll just leave it to them then."

"The only question now is what we do about the big guy, here?" Happy asked, referring to the Maulwurf.

"Velvet's been raised by humans since he was a baby, so we can't afford to release him back into the wild." Yukino commented.

"Think maybe we can take him back to the guild?" Natsu questioned.

"That's not a good idea." Lucy shook her head. "He'd probably tear up most of Magnolia."

"If that's the case, then I'll take care of him."

Looking up the road, the group looked in minor surprise to see Porlyusica having just arrived, alongside Erza, Gray, Wendy, Modeus, Carla, Nero, Kyrie, and Makarov.

"Oh, hey guys." Lisanna waved.

"Hey, there, if isn't Grannydeeneny." Natsu joked towards Porlyusica, causing the older woman to groan in annoyance.

"So, you plan on taking Velvet in, Porlyusica?" Lisanna asked.

"Why not?" She replied. "You know I prefer the company of animals rather than humans. That aside, I'm familiar with sub-terranian creatures like Maulwurfs, and the East Forest would be the perfect habitat. I'm sure it'll be fine." She walked up to the creature, who gazed down at her. "So your name is Velvet? That's a rather nice name. Would you like to come home with me?"

Velvet took a second to sniff out Porlyusica for a second and took an instant liking to her as he rubbed his face against her, causing her to smile.

"I'll take that as a yes." She said with a smile.

"Wait… is she smiling…?" Natsu questioned, looking perplexed along with Happy and Lucy.

"I'm seeing it…. But I don't believe it…" Lucy muttered.

"Is that really Porlyusica or just an imposter?" Happy questioned.

The old woman in question heard them as she gave them a deathly glare. "You kids are just asking for my broom, aren't you?!" She glared harshly.

"Yep, that's her." Lucy's eyelids lowered unsurprised.

"She really does hate humans, huh?" Natsu groaned.

"Hey, I'm a cat, not a human. So why does she hate me?" Happy questioned.

"Well, that takes care of that." Lisanna said with a satisfied smile before turning to the rest of her friends. "So what are the rest of you all doing here?"

Erza walked up with a mysterious smile. "I heard that you all went out on a job, and I wanted to show you all something…" She offered her left arm to shake.

"Show us what? I…" Lisanna looked towards her left arm, and the second she saw it… her eyes became circular as she put her hands over mouth in emotional shock. "E-Erza…! Y-your arm…! Your left arm!"

That caught everyone's attention as Erza smiled and allowed her armor to magically vanish, the clothes under it being only her typical white blouse and blue skirt. But this allowed everyone to see Erza's new appendage. Her left arm looked almost completely human in appearance, yet the skin was completely green all the way up to her elbow. She showed her left green arm for everyone to see.

Natsu, Happy, Lucy, and Lisanna looked in absolute and emotional shock, with even Dante, Lady, and Trish feeling the same way, and even Yukino was more than a little surprise.

Makarov, Gray, Modeus, Carla, and Nero had happy and relieved smiles of their own, especially as they looked towards Wendy and Kyrie with pride, both of whom were shedding tears of joy, both for their mutual friend who regained what she had lost… but at their own accomplishment as they helped heal their friend together. The two even held hands as they looked to each other with happy smiles.

Lucy shakily held Erza's green left hand with both of hers as tears were already in her eyes. This was the same arm that her eldest cousin had severed during that horrific battle… But now… Erza had it back! She had her arm back! She almost fell to her knees, crying in joy, to which Erza allowed herself to kneel to hold her and let Lucy vent out all complicated emotions that she was undoubtedly feeling, with the redhead having a happy and understanding smile. To an extent, she has a very good idea of what Lucy is going through right now.

"I… I don't understand…" Dante walked forward, looking speechless for one of the very few moments in his life. "How…?"

"Former master Makarov got into contact with an old friend in the Wizard Saints." Erza explained simply. "He and Porlyusica worked together to construct an artificial arm for myself."

"Why is it green, though?" Trish asked.

Natsu, who had his own emotions running wild inside him as well, picked up an unfamiliar scent from the arm. "It… smells like plants…"

"This limb was made from a special magic that allows one to manipulate nature." Erza responded. "The base form of it was constructed using plant-like materials. But thanks to Wendy and Kyrie combining their respective magics, it's become one with me. It feels the same as my original arm, but also stronger than before."

"Strong how…? Exactly…?" Lady questioned.

Erza smiled as she stood up, separating from Lucy before walking over to a nearby rock. She pulled back her fist and delivered a precise strike that shattered the rock, turning it into gravel in seconds, much to the surprise of everyone.

"And I was holding back." Erza said. "Before, I'd have to put twice as much effort to smash that rock with my bare fist." She turned to everyone with a smile as she looked towards her green hand as she got a bit emotional herself. Before, she had come to the reluctant acceptance that she would have to spend the rest of her life with only one arm… but now… she had a new one. One that felt the same as her old one… she felt whole again. The green skin around it felt a tad bit surreal… but that was a small price to pay. This new arm was a gift… one she was beyond grateful for. She then bowed towards the old woman who helped to restore it. "Porlyusica, I owe you my thanks."

"You don't owe me anything." The old woman said as she remained close to Velvet. "I just did what I felt was right."

"And Makarov, if you could, please tell Warrod the same for me." Erza bowed to him as well. "And to you too. Thank you."

"Even though I am retired as guildmaster, you are my child, Erza. I will do anything for you and everyone else in the guild." Makarov smiled. "And I'll be sure to let Warrod know as well."

Though Makarov understood why Warrod had to leave so soon after Erza's procedure ended, saying that some political issues were popping up across the continent, it did leave him a bit concerned. As one of the spokespersons of Ishgar alongside Kurenai and a few of the other fellow Wizard Saints, their job was to help maintain peace throughout the continent. From the sound of it, a few issues were quickly arising in Fiore's neighboring countries. Though he was hopeful it wasn't anything serious, he'd be a fool to dismiss his worrying thoughts.

Happy flew into Erza's chest, bawling his eyes out in joy for her. "Erza…!" Happy cried as Lucy, Lisanna, Kyrie, and Wendy all joined in, hugging Erza as Natsu, Dante, Gray, Nero, Modeus, Carla, Lady, Trish, and Makarov all surrounded the group with happy smiles of their own. Even Porlyusica, who maintained her distance with Velvet, smiled for them too.

Yukino stood a bit of a distance herself, smiling. She was truly happy for Erza and everyone in Fairy Tail. Seeing them all like this… it really sunk in for her how different this guild was to Sabertooth. Their own relationship with one another was professional at best, and toxic at worst. But this guild? Everyone treated their members with such compassion and kindness, that one could mistake them for family.

No. There was no mistake here… They were family. Some members were related to each other by blood, sure. But everyone here clearly loved and supported each other. Lifting her own shirt up somewhat, she saw the guild emblem of Fairy Tail on it and smiled, only to look and see a hand was being offered to her.

The hand belonging to none other than the smiling Dante, silently telling her to get in and join them.

'Sorano, I know you're thinking about me, and I'll never stop thinking about you either.' Yukino thought to herself. 'I love you and I know that you love me too. That'll never change. But… I think I'm beginning to understand what you were trying to tell me. Just because we're sisters, doesn't mean we shouldn't close ourselves off from everyone else. Like Dante said… this world is far from perfect, but it's not so bad either. And I'm going to see more of it, alongside the rest of the friends I've made.' She accepted Dante's hand as she joined in with the group. 'Just as you've found a new family with Crime Sorciere… Fairy Tail is my family now.'

As Lucy wiped away the last of her tears, she happened to look towards Natsu, who was holding Erza's new arms himself to get a good feel out of it, and likely want to break it in by challenging her to a fight. But as she set her eyes on him… she remembered the words spoken to her by Dante and Lisanna. There was no ongoing crisis, their job was done, and everyone was happy with the development of Erza's new arm. It might seem like what she wanted to do would overshadow that celebration, but…

'Oh, what the hell?' She pushed down any indecisive thoughts and just decided to go for it.

"Hey, Natsu." Lucy walked right up to him.

"Yeah? What is it?"

He would soon get his response as Lucy grabbed him by the shoulders and leaned into him to press her own lips against his own.

All the joy everyone was feeling gave way to pure shock. Gray, Erza, Happy, Wendy, Carla, Lady, Modeus, Trish, Makarov, Nero, Kyrie, and Yukino were completely caught off guard by this. Dante and Lisanna were initially surprised to, but as they shared glances with each other, approving smirks formed on both their faces.

But none of that compared to Natsu himself as Lucy pulled away to see his circular eyes, his mouth being a perfect o, while she smiled.

"I love you, Natsu." Lucy told him, much to everyone's further surprise, and that's all she was gonna say. She wanted to do a big heartfelt speech, but Natsu was always the simple type, so she'd keep this simple for him.

"Wait… hold on…" Wendy looked in confusion. "What about Lisanna…?"

"Oh, I still love him too." Lisanna said bluntly as she wrapped her arms around Natsu's left arm. "We're both gonna be with him."

As if they weren't surprised enough. Erza, Gray, Nero, Yukino, and Trish all looked with white and circular eyes while Wendy, Kyrie, and Happy's eyes turned into spiraling confusion.

"Wait… Natsu is gonna date both of them…?!" Happy muttered.

"Oh my…" Yukino's face turned red.

"How… I… I don't… That's not…" Kyrie muttered.

"Both…? Three people together…?" Wendy's face was turning red too.

"Now look what you've done! You're sullying Wendy's innocence!" Carla scolded the three.

"Oh, it's way too late for that, furball." Trish told her.

"Damn… so it really is a thing." Lady commented, being initially surprised herself, but remembered some moments that went down between them during the Games. She looked to Dante who smiled knowingly. "You knew, didn't you?"

"Hey, what goes on in someone's bedroom is their own business." Dante shrugged.

Makarov fell to his knees as he appeared to be balling. "Gramps?" Gray questioned in shock.

"Natsu…! I am so proud of you…!" Makarov cried in joy, causing nearly everyone to turn white.

All the while, Natsu himself was at a loss for words, processing what Lucy just told him. But, as he did… and he found himself looking at not only her, the way she smiled at him… but also Lisanna who mirrored her expression…. He didn't quite understand it… but with the two of them like this… he felt warm inside. He felt… happy. So, with a smile, he hoisted both of them up in his arms and held them tightly, with Lucy and Lisanna doing the same as they wrapped their arms around him as well. As they did, they both exchanged eye contact with each other, as they reached out to link their own hands together.

---

Meanwhile, in a secluded forest, about ten miles away from Doromud village, Sid hopped from tree to tree, with Obra still on his shoulder. They would soon arrive at their destination, where they spotted two individuals on the ground below.

One was a familiar blue-clad, white-haired individual who carried a katana, who leaned against a tree with crossed arms; while the other, was a man with black hair and a black robe, who sat somewhat meditatively on the ground, his back facing the pair as Sid hopped down.

Sid immediately bowed as Obra crawled off his shoulder and bowed as well. "Reporting in as requested, Lord Vergil, Lord Zeref."

Turning slightly as he stood up straight, Vergil addressed the two first. "Were you able to do as we instructed?"

"As per your command, I was able to record the Magic Council's debate and decision to use an Etherion on the capital of Fiore, along with their intent to take over the country after more-or-less executing the royal family during the dragons' invasion via the Eclipse Gate." Sid reported. "Thank you again, for sending me to their headquarters, Lord Vergil."

"And?" Vergil inquired again.

"And, as you ordered, I had copied onto various lacrimas that entire deliberation and sent each copy to all the surrounding countries in Ishgar." Sid added. "Both to the countries' leadership, as well as news articles. Already the Magic Council's choice is becoming well-known across the continent. It won't be long before their precious order falls apart."

"What of Raven Tail?" Vergil questioned once more.

Now it was the imp's turn to speak, talking in a high-pitched raspy tone. "Ivan and the others have gone into hiding, and I believe Minerva from Sabertooth is currently with them. Shall I dispose of them? You know I'm capable of just that."

"Do as you wish with them." Vergil instructed.

"Sid, Obra… thank you both for your service." Zeref finally spoke, keeping his back turned to them. "You are now free to do as you wish."

Sid smiled enthusiastically. "Thank you for your kindness, Lord Zeref!" With that, he hopped back into the trees and fled the area, with Obra doing the same by scurrying off into a separate direction within the forest.

"Was it truly wise to let them go?" Vergil questioned the Black Wizard. "We both know who they each truly serve. No doubt they'll return to Abigail and Argosax and continue to aid them in their return."

"Of course, and with the chaos that's about to ensue from the leak of the Magic Council we provided, they'll be more than willing to take advantage and make their moves sooner. It's what we're counting on, after all." Zeref said.

"I agreed to your plan, but I must bring up the recklessness of it all." Vergil told him. "Our intent was to see to it the Eclipse Gate was destroyed, as well as create a crisis to expose to the continent the corruption of the governing Magic Council. But, in that encounter, I had crossed paths with an alternate version of Lucy, who came from a future where the dragons we planned to use had gone out of control and decimated Fiore, and likely the rest of Ishgar as well. If anything had gone wrong in our objective, that would have likely been the end result."

A hard look fell on Zeref's face. "Perhaps you are right. We may have been too blunt in that approach. But given what that Legion-entity was planning to do, we couldn't exactly afford a careful strategy. Time was just as much against us as it was for Fairy Tail. But while the execution was far from… optimal, the end result was still achieved. The Eclipse Gate is destroyed, and it can no longer fall into the hands of those who would want to abuse its power; and the Magic Council will soon face a crisis that could lead to a potential rebellion and it's inevitable overthrow; be it at the hands of the citizens whom they are supposed to protect, or the rising demons who would see them as an obstacle to their own plans."

"So that is your objective?"

Slowly descending from the sky, the spirits of Mavis and Sparda had appeared on the scene, both looking down on the pair with serious expressions as the former spoke.

"If you sought to destroy the Eclipse Gate, there were easier and simpler ways to go about it without setting a war into motion." The first master of Fairy Tail said seriously.

Vergil looked towards them with a glare, seeing the spirit of Mavis himself. But that glare was more aimed in the direction of his father, whom he was able to see and hear. And the moment Sparda saw that glare, his own expression softened.

"Vergil…"

"Father." He greeted coldly as the two spirits touched the ground.

A sad smile formed on Zeref's face as he slowly stood up, turning around to face the spirit of his teacher again, as well as that of Mavis. "Sparda, Mavis… it's been so long. And yet, the three of us stand together, baring the same faces, as if it were only a day since we last each spoke together."

"You two have been working together…? This whole time…?" Sparda asked, looking between his eldest son and former student. "Since when…?"

"Since the events of Acnologia's attack on Tenrou Island seven years ago." Zeref revealed. "Vergil heard the news and intended to see it for himself, I imagine he was greatly concerned for his brother and cousin." He looked to Vergil with a slight smile, which the eldest half-demon didn't respond to. "Once he saw my power, he tried to kill me. He failed. I explained to him who I was and my relation to you. Before I had even met him or Dante, I wasn't aware that you had any children, but I was happy to learn it. After all the strife you've endured in your life, you deserved a chance to settle down and live happily." His own smile faded. "I was also told what had happened to your wife and your children, and you have my honest condolences."

Despite the tension in this encounter, Sparda could tell that Zeref meant what he said, evident by the sad yet grateful smile that appeared on his own face. "Thank you…"

"But before we begin, I believe it may be best to allow another old friend to join us." Zeref said as he and Vergil glanced behind them as a familiar hooded woman appeared before them. This was Gandelina. "Come now… take off that disguise, there's no need for it. I want to see the face of my old friend… Anna."

The woman in the hood gave a sigh as she lowered her own hood, revealing her black hair… which changed to blonde as she released the transformation spell that changed her hair color. The face of an older woman who looked near identical to Lucy was revealed.

This was none other than Anna Heartfilia, ancestor of Lucy, Layla, Dante, Vergil, and Eva; former student of Sparda, and the greatest Celestial Wizard of her time.

"The years have been good to you, my friend." Zeref greeted friendly.

"I wish I could say the same for you, Zeref." Anna said sadly. "You look the same… but your eyes tell the whole story."

"So, the two of you plan to overthrow the Magic Council?" Mavis questioned. "If you wanted that, as well as to destroy the Eclipse Gate, why go through these roundabout measures? You could have gone directly to Fairy Tail and simply asked for help. Your family… our family… Vergil… they would have helped you. You didn't have to create such a crisis to serve your goals."

"Legion had already set that plan into motion by the time I discovered it." Vergil answered. "Zeref and I had originally planned to sabotage the Eclipse Gate without revealing ourselves, or its own existence to the outside world."

"I was appalled to sense the magic of that Gate six years ago when the Grand Magic Games began." Zeref added. "That device had served its purpose, and it should have been destroyed for good."

"And perhaps you are right." Anna said. "I was told it would be dismantled once I had stepped through, I even helped to do just that. Perhaps I should have gone further and destroyed each individual piece."

"What's done is done though." Zeref replied. "Vergil contacted me the moment he encountered Legion and I devised a strategy that I believe could have contained the crisis, as well as aid in our other objectives."

"I made Legion's plan clear to Fairy Tail, which set their intent to destroy the Eclipse Gate into motion." Vergil added.

"And even if Legion had won that battle, I would have stepped in to kill him myself as a last resort." Zeref put in.

"Again, you could have simply joined Fairy Tail and helped them to stop that crisis!" Mavis reminded.

However, Sparda had sensed there was another reason behind their insane and roundabout plan. "What other objectives do you speak of?"

"Oh, come now, you must all be aware of what is happening in the world." Zeref began. "Acnologia's reappearance has set ripples into motion that have affected both Earthland and the Underworld. The Magic Council is consumed by fear, trying to maintain control of Ishgar through forceful means. I wouldn't be surprised if they tried to move and conquer the rest of this world… potentially targeting my empire of Alvarez… or worse, stirring the hornet's nest by invading Guiltina and inciting the fury of the Five Dragon Gods, whose own power rivals Acnologia himself."

"Argosax and Abigail have already begun their plan to liberate themselves and invade Earthland." Vergil added. "Urizen has been quiet so far, but that could change. Not to mention Tartaros has begun moving too. But… most disturbing of all… Is the reveal of the world where Legion came from upon emerging from the Eclipse Gate… and that is a world decimated by Mundus."

Sparda, Anna, and Mavis all looked very serious at that.

"If that is true, then the Demon Emperor may return very soon." Zeref said as he looked up towards the sky. "This world is beautiful… and yet, forces of evil from both sides intend to destroy and rip it apart. It's not just demons or even dragons… humanity throughout these past centuries have grown prideful… destructive… I've seen far too many conflicts incited by man… even those of good intentions who do more harm than good."

"I repeat the question that you have failed to answer… Why. Do. You. Not. Ask. Fairy Tail. For help?" Mavis all but growled.

"Because they won't go along with it." Zeref answered firmly. "We may share a common enemy with Acnologia and Mundus, but they won't accept the end goal that Vergil and I strive for."

"You don't know that." Sparda said. "I told them your story, Zeref…"

"Oh?" Vergil interrupted. "Did you tell them of how he was cursed by Mundus? Or did you perhaps leave out the details of him being Natsu's older brother?" That caused Sparda's eyes to widen, along with those of Anna and Mavis. "Did you tell them that he, Gajeel, Wendy, Sting, and Rogue are all orphans from the Dragon King Festival four hundred years ago… and that they came to this time through the Eclipse Gate? Did you tell them of what really happened with their dragons?" Vergil narrowed his eyes. "Or that Natsu himself is an Etherious? And that you yourself had a hand in that?"

Sparda's face was almost pale before he found himself looking towards Zeref. "You… told him…?"

"I've never been the type to keep secrets." Zeref answered simply. "Though I do appreciate you wanting save my name and paint me in a more positive light towards your guild and your son."

"I always respected you as a warrior, Father." Vergil began. "But… while your power was nothing to scoff at, you were weak. You didn't do what needed to be done…" He glared hard as he faced the spirit of his father. "You sealed these demons away, rather than slay them. You didn't put Zeref out of his misery, leading to that cult to form in his name, which created so many atrocities, not to mention Tartaros is now an active threat of your making!"

"Would you so easily end the life of someone you care for?" Sparda argued. "When there's even a chance that they could be saved?"

"I would at least make it quick and painless, rather than have them suffer." Vergil answered. "And perhaps if you were more decisive… then Mother would still be alive."

That hit Sparda right where it hurts, something that made Mavis glare hard at Vergil. Anna gasped somewhat as she heard that, with even Zeref looking sympathetic.

A flash of hurt appeared in Sparda's eyes as he instantly recalled the smiling face of his beloved Eva, holding both their infant sons in her arms. And now, his eldest son was looking at him with contempt and disappointment… something that caused Sparda to look away.

"Maybe you're right…"

"So… I take it your plan remains the same? To kill Acnologia and Mundus?" Anna asked.

"That is part of it." Zeref answered. "I won't bore you with the details… but there is a war coming." He gave a hard and serious glare. "A war that will wipe away all evil off the faces of Earthland and the Underworld. And once the dust has settled, I will lead the rebuilding of a new world here in Earthland, one that will know only peace and love. I was cursed with immortality, but that curse will be what I use to forever watch over this new world to ensure that no evil ever threatens it again as it's ever vigil guardian and protector."

"And as I've told Fairy Tail… once Mundus, Acnologia, and the Three Demon Kings are all eliminated, I will take the throne of the Underworld and see to it that it never becomes a threat to Earthland again." Vergil put in with a serious and stone-cold expression to match that of his partner in crime.

"And how many people will die before you reach these goals of yours?" Anna questioned as she walked around them to join Sparda and Mavis.

"The casualties will be a great, many…" Zeref admitted. "It's unfortunate, but a necessary evil."

Mavis glared at both of them alongside Anna. "I swear that Fairy Tail will stop you! They will wipe the stain of Mundus and Acnologia from this land, and yours along with them!"

In that instant, the entire forest died. The trees quickly withered away, leaving only their empty and withered husks along with the brown and barren grass as the two parties glared hard at each other. Sparda, being the only one who had a soft expression, looked at his former student and eldest son.

"I'm sorry… to both of you." He began. "I'm sorry that I was never able to find a cure for you, Zeref. I'm sorry that even after everything… our creations have gotten out into the world and harmed so many… and that you've led a painful existence."

"I hold no grudge against you, old friend." Zeref assured. "Even if we stand now as enemies."

"Vergil…" Sparda turned to his son, who still glared at him. "All I've ever wanted for you and your brother is to live a normal life, one filled with joy and happiness."

"It's too late for that now, Father." Vergil said. "I've chosen my path, and I will not turn away."

Tears had formed in Sparda's ghostly eyes. "Then… I hope you two find peace someday."

"I could stop you. Both of you." Anna said to them. "Here and now."

"You could try…" Zeref replied. "But we all know it won't end well for you, Anna. My power has already surpassed yours. Strike now, and while I won't kill you, I will beat you into the ground if I must."

"Tell Fairy Tail our plan if you wish, it won't change anything." Vergil also said.

Anna glared at the two of them, her descendant and the man who was once her best friend. But she knew they were right. She might have the power to potentially subdue Vergil, even if she doesn't make it out unscathed, but Zeref's power was on another level and had already eclipsed her own. So, with great reluctance, she stepped to the side, showing she would not fight them.

"You will be stopped though, even if it's not by my hand."

With that, Vergil and Zeref both walked past her, side-by-side alongside each other, moving past the spirits of Mavis and Sparda… but not before Zeref and Mavis looked at each other one last time before continuing on; leaving the three who could only watch as the two people they cared so much about went down their set path together.

'Natsu…' Zeref looked up to the sky. 'The time of our next meeting draws near.'

'A storm approaches Dante, Lucy.' Vergil thought as well. 'Be prepared.'

Done.

And with that, the Grand Magic Games arc has finally come to an end!

We've got quite a few takeaways from this final epilogue chapter, wouldn't you say?

First off, Yukino is integrating rather well into Fairy Tail, having done her first job with them, and has done exceptionally well! Though she's still struggling to adapt to the change in environment, that's only natural. But she seems to be doing rather well in such a positive place like Fairy Tail, and they even have their old guildhall back! So congrats to them!

I decided to change a few things about the mole-mission, primarily getting rid of the part where the mole was attracted to Lucy. I get that episode was supposed to be a lighthearted moment and a nice break from all the heavy emotions of the Grand Magic Games arc, but that was still ridiculous. So, I changed it a bit in order to give Yukino a chance to shine, as well as maintain the same levity and make it a bit more serious.

Erza's also gotten a replacement arm! I know that many of you were hoping to see Nico and make her a prosthetic arm like she did for Nero in DMC5, but that didn't quite feel like Erza's style. She's not exactly the gun or mechanical type like Dante or Nero are. So instead, Warrod and Porlyusica were able to make her a new arm using the former's green magic, with Wendy and Kyrie using their respective healing magics to both attach it and make it one with Erza. And it's gotten some impressive physical strength behind it… but who is to say that's not all it can do? Maybe it's got a few more surprise in store that not even Erza is expecting. (Hint, hint). But I am none the less happy to do this for Erza, she's more than deserving of it.

And yep, Natsu is now officially in a threesome relationship, much to the shock and confusion of many of his guildmates LOL.

But don't expect any big romantic gestures like in one of those harem anime that have been popping up lately. They're going to have their own dynamic going on that is unique to them.

But of course, the biggest takeaway from this chapter… is the reveal that Vergil and Zeref are working together! And have been since just after Tenrou Island!
I bet you didn't see that coming, did you?

I'm sure many of you are confused, so let me explain some of the details to you…

Vergil and Zeref formed an alliance because of their mutual goals of killing Acnologia and Mundus, with Vergil aiming to take the Demon Emperor's throne and remake the Underworld with Zeref planning on taking over Earthland as its immortal ruler and guardian, hoping to guide it toward a better path. But in order to do all of that, there's a set number of goals they have to achieve…

Their more immediate goal was to destroy the Eclipse Gate with Zeref sensing its reconstruction, having built the device. Their original plan was to subtly sabotage the Gate to keep its existence a secret, as well as their own. Vergil had been recruited into the Royal Kingdom's forces, along with the Magic Council, and joined Sabertooth for all the reasons he said before, but also to get close enough to sabotage the Eclipse Gate. Only to encounter Future Legion and learn about Mundus' possible return in the near future. That's when things got complicated for the two.

The plan to destroy the Eclipse Gate evolved, to the point of using it and Future Legion to create a crisis that would force the Magic Council into a desperate position and expose their corrupt side to the world. Vergil had Sid record their decision to use the Etherion and potentially take over Fiore and spread copies of their recording to many of the neighboring countries under the Magic Council's jurisdiction. This will lead to chaos as the Council will face uproars and discourse…

Which Vergil and Zeref hope to use to draw out the darker forces of Abigail, Argosax, and Tartaros, all of whom are becoming a problem for the immediate future.

All of this, according to Vergil and Zeref, is only the first step to an even bigger conflict which they plan to use as a way to wipe out all evil from Earthland and the Underworld and take over both. Though this will not be without some serious bloodshed, something both Zeref and Vergil are reluctant to accept, but accept it nonetheless, believing the end goal will be worth it.

Two chess masters playing the long game… and they're already succeeding.

Oh, and just as many of you had already guessed it, Gandelina is indeed Anna Heartfilia.

But yeah, thus ends this monster of an arc, and with that, I will see you with the start of something very special in two months that I'm sure you'll enjoy. Until then, stay safe and stay healthy out there. I love you all.