Yuril stood by the riverside in Magnolia as the sun was starting to set. She was breathing really hard with her violin in her hand as her guitar case floated behind her. Yuril grit her teeth as her free hand clenched into a tight fist.
"I couldn't do it." Yuril said. "I couldn't pull off the elemental music magic."
Which means she couldn't stop training just yet. She still had enough magic in her to give it one last go. She placed the violin underneath her chin, and then the bow over the strings. She started warming up to the spell by starting slowly on the song to build up her magic. The wind started to stir around her. It tickled the ends of her waist length hair, and lifted the edge of her dress a bit. Yuril closed her eyes, focusing on everyone note… the flow of the music. She started speeding up the song with the wind picking up a bit around her. Finally she reached the actual tempo of the song, and the wind had really picked up around her by now. Yes… she could do this.
"Song of… the Dancing Wind!" Yuril said with her eyes snapping open.
A pink magic circle appeared in front of her violin, and wind shot out of it to dance around her in the form of spinning cyclones. They danced along with the song until she hit the last note. As soon as she lifted her bow, the wind dispersed with a fwoosh! Yuril's entire body shook as she tried to take in gasping breaths to quell her burning lungs. It felt as if she had just run a marathon at top speed. Sanjū, who was watching her, clapped her paws together for Yuril's accomplishment. Yuril grinned even as her legs gave out, which sent her back towards the ground.
"I… did… it." She said just as she hit the ground.
She looked up at the pinkish-orange sky with a grin growing on her face. She probably looked ridiculous laying there all dirty and sweaty with that grin on her face, but she didn't care. She finally pulled off the highest form of elemental music magic. Sanjū went over to Yuril to climb onto her torso to sit down.
"Are you going to be okay, Yuril?" Muse asked.
"Yeah." Yuril said as she lifted her head a bit to look at Muse. "I just need to catch my breath."
Muse nodded her head as Yuril laid her head back down to continue to look up at the shy. Suddenly her view of the sky was blocked when Gray's face appeared above her as he was leaning over her.
"You really did it this time, Yuril." He said frowning. "You used up all your magic energy."
Yuril was too weak to come up with an actual retort, so she stuck her tongue out at him instead. Gray snorted, shaking his head. He knelt down beside Yuril as her violin and bow went flying from her hand into the guitar case, which promptly closed and fastened up before resting on the ground beside Yuril. Yuril looked at Gray with a look that clearly asked what he was doing here.
"If you've failed to notice, it's getting late." Gray said. "When you hadn't returned to Fairy Hills Erza came to Master Makarov worried. She won't admit she was worried though."
Yuril rolled her eyes, highly doubting that Erza really was worried about her. The two couldn't stand each other.
"So, Master asked some of us to search for you." Gray continued as if he hadn't noticed Yuril roll her eyes. "Good thing I knew to come here. I'm surprised the stupid firebug isn't here already."
"Yuril!"
"Spoke too soon." Gray grumbled.
Yuril tilted her head back to see Natsu running their way with Happy flying behind him. Yuril raised her hand in a weak wave as she grinned at Natsu. Her best friend came to a skidding halt on Yuril's other side.
"What'd you do to her, Gray?!" Natsu demanded, looking pissed.
"I didn't do anything, moron!" Gray snapped. "This idiot here used up all her magic from pushing herself too hard in training."
"Yuril isn't an idiot, but you are, Freezer Head!" Natsu retorted.
This started one of their usual spatting matches with the two cats standing off to the side to watch them, and as they argued and butt heads above Yuril, the musical mage's grin widened. Just another normal day with her two closest friends.
"Ah!" Yuril gasped with her eyes shooting open.
She sat up while looking around her to see that she appeared to be in some kind of tent. At first she was confused, but then everything that happened last night came flooding back to my mind. Her eyes widened for a second before narrowing.
"That damn Erza." Yuril hissed.
"Oh, you're awake."
Yuril turned her head seeing one of the villagers, who was in human form, standing there at the entrance of the tent.
"Your friends were getting really worried about you." She said as she came in. "Ms. Erza asked we look out for you until you awake."
Yuril scoffed. Erza was the reason her stomach felt as if it had been hit by a train. Once Yuril got her hands on Erza, it wouldn't be pretty.
"Where are they?" Yuril asked. "My friends and Erza."
"They went running towards the temple." The villager explained. "About ten minutes ago or so."
Yuril's eyes widened in surprise. They went to attack the enemy without her?! Those jerks! And she thought Erza was against helping the villagers?! She's so pissed off that she was taken out so easily like that-especially by Erza of all people. She has to redeem herself by kicking butt now. Yuril shoved the blankets off of her legs, and she got up from the ground. She nearly toppled over as the feeling in her legs was still trying to return.
"Ah, what are you doing?" The villager asked as Yuril righted herself.
"Going after those jerks who left me behind, of course!" Yuril said. "Think they can just leave me here, do they? I'll kick all their asses!"
The villager leaned away in fear when Yuril gave a murderous grin. The villager did not want to get in Yuril's way at all, so she didn't even try to stop Yuril as the bluenette went running from the tent.
"ERZA, I'M GOING TO DESTROY YOU!" She shouted up to the sky as she ran in the direction of the temple. "AND YOU TOO, LYON! YOU PRICK!"
As Lyon was fighting with Natsu, he paused to sneeze rather loudly. What the hell? Was someone talking about him? And why did he feel as if someone stepped on his grave? Suddenly the ice next to them started shattering, which confused Natsu. The ice ruptured completely to reveal Gray there with a determined look on his face.
"Oh, it's Gray." Natsu said.
"Leave him to me." Gray said as he stepped up in between Lyon and Natsu. "It's time we settled things once and for all."
"No way, Man!" Natsu said. "You already lost to him once!"
Which meant Lyon was fair game, and Natsu was ready to kick ass.
"And it won't happen again." Gray said. "I'm ready to end this now."
"You seem awfully confident." Lyon said.
He smirked tauntingly at Gray who gave him a glare in return.
"You were right. I'm the one to blame for our master's death." Gray said then spread his legs to get into a stance. "But you're no better. You've threatened my comrades. Brought harm to the villagers, and now you're trying to destroy what Ur gave her life for. It's time we accept our punishment together."
Gray got into a stance with his arms crossed out in front of him, and Lyon's eyes widened when he realized what Gray was going to do.
"That stance." Lyon said. "Not the iced shell!"
"Ice shell?" Natsu murmured.
Natsu then remembered Gray mentioning something about the Iced Shell. Natsu's eyes widened realizing it was the spell that killed Ur and sealed away Deliora.
"Are you insane?!" Lyon demanded. "You wouldn't dare."
"If you wanna live, change the villagers back to their human forms." Gray ordered. "And then leave this island and never return!"
A large blue magic circle appeared under Gray, and it made the entire room glow blue as well.
"If you agree to that, I'll stop." Gray said. "If you don't… then this is the end."
"That so?" Lyon asked, smirking. "Well, I don't believe a word of it. You're bluffing."
The magic exploded around the room with an icy wind twirling around blowing back Lyon and Natsu's clothes.
"No, I'm not." Gray said.
"You'll die!" Lyon warned him as he raised his hand to try and use magic to counteract the Iced Shell.
However, he was just sent flying back because the magic Gray was using was much stronger.
"Don't do it!" Natsu shouted.
"All these years I've been lying to myself." Gray said as he ignored Natsu. "I didn't want to admit Ur died because of me, but she did. And it's time I took responsibility. So I will here and now. I'm not afraid to die if that's what it takes."
Gray's entire body started to turn white as if he was becoming ice and his skin started to crack.
"Stop this now!" Lyon ordered.
"What's it going to be, Lyon?" Gray asked. "Are we going to live or are we going to die?"
"You're not brave enough to give your life!" Lyon said. "You're nothing but a coward."
"Just watch me." Gray said.
He started building up his magic even more as Natsu yelled at him to stop. However, Gray wasn't going to listen. He had to do this.
"Stop right now!"
Gray gasped, turning his head to the new voice to see...
"Yuril?!" He yelled.