The Red Dragon

Chapter 3

Chapter 3

Gray and Lyon stood in front of a freshly dug grave, each holding a bouquet of red roses. It had been six years since Ur had taken Gray in. She'd always seemed so much larger than life, to see her taken by something as mundane as disease seemed almost insulting to her memory. They had taken care of her as best they could, but in the end, they had only been able to make her comfortable.

Gray had never regretted going home with her and Lyon. Sure, Lyon was a jerk and not the most comfortable person to live with, but it had been nice to not be alone, and Ur had taught him everything she'd promised and more.

She'd trained them hard, no matter the weather. It wasn't unusual for her to have them run through the mountains in their underwear during a snowstorm until they no longer felt the cold. It had been miserable at first, but with time it became as natural to them as breathing.

She was a strict taskmaster, balancing their magic training with their schooling, insisting that the two went hand in hand. And even though she'd given both Gray and Lyon the annoying habit of stripping their clothes as part of their training, she'd also shown Gray that his mind was his biggest asset. Ice Make magic was a magic of creation, and the only limit to its power was his own imagination. He'd taken that lesson to heart.

The biggest reason he'd loved Ur, however, was that she'd never tried to replace his parents. She'd always given him the love he'd needed, but she'd never forced it on him, just carved a place in his heart next to them. He would miss her terribly.

He'd taken to Ice Make magic, practicing for hours daily, driven both by his hatred of the red dragon whose name he now knew to be Deliora and his determination to surprise Natsu when he saw him again. There was a fair amount of mostly friendly rivalry with Lyon as well. All these things had worked to strengthen him, his ice magic almost rivaling that of Ur herself.

He'd never forgotten Natsu, despite having met him for only a few days. If he closed his eyes, he could still see the pink hair, the bright green eyes, and the fanged grin, and he'd wonder what had happened to him. Had he ever made it home?

Some days he'd get these feelings that didn't seem to make sense, and he would pretend that he was feeling what Natsu was feeling and it made him feel close to him all over again.

Lyon put his bouquet down on the grave, and Gray did the same.

Gray heard Lyon whisper to Ur that he was sorry he never got to surpass her. He backed away, wanting to give Lyon some privacy as he said his goodbyes to their Master.

Lyon rejoined Gray, asking what was on both of their minds.

"What do we do now?"

They had decided to stay together, but they hadn't discussed any future plans. It had felt disrespectful to Ur to consider it while she was still with them.

"I want to go to Talos." Gray immediately replied.

"Not that again. You don't even know if that guy is still there," Lyon replied, looking mildly annoyed. "It's a fool's errand."

"Perhaps, but I asked around. It's not that far from here, and they're looking for magic users for their Village Guard," Gray informed him with a smile. He knew this would get the other's attention.

"Even if it ends up being a fool's errand, we can at least find jobs there."

When Lyon agreed, Gray could barely contain his excitement. After all these years, he was finally going to get to see Natsu again.

Maybe.

They went home to pack their belongings and spend one last night in the home Ur had provided for them. But it felt strangely cold without her in it.