A Millenium Ends, a slayers fanfic

The corridor was dark and filled with misty haze. A pungent odor clung to the air, refusing to be ignored after years of residence in the ancient ruins. The acrid smell made her eyes water as she listened to the echo of her own footsteps. When had she started running? Where was she, for that matter? What was she doing here? She couldn't tell. Out of the depths of her chaotic thoughts came a longing, fierce and painful, to find that.

Two figures loomed ahead of her. The mist made her squint, trying to see who they were. As a princess and an effective diplomatic figure, she'd found that a previous knowledge of her political opponents was worth her own weight in gold.

Not that she was heavy. In fact, those who knew her would argue that she had a slight, almost petite figure. Others would argue that a distinct feature on her chest (or two distinct features to be more technical) placed her in a more buxom body-type category. Perhaps it was this proportional imbalance which caused her to trip, sliding the remainder of the distance between her and the two figures. They stood as silently as ever, seemingly unfazed by the awkward social situation her clumsy antics usually summoned.

She sat up, dazed, and wondered why her limbs felt like lead weights. Was this a dream? Her mind worked sluggishly around the concept. If this was a dream, then surely that had to be in the room blocked by the two inscrutable figures. Anguish, expectation, and yearning stabbed her chest with unrelenting waves of pain. Just thinking of seeing that again was unbelievable. And yet, nothing would force her to believe otherwise. Preparing herself for another disappointment, she stepped toward the blinding light. Immediately, a pair of arms blocked her passage. She stepped back and glowered at the two recondite figures, hoping that they could feel the heat of her gaze. They just shook their heads, still refusing her entrance into the room of light.

Determined to gain entrance into the room, she made as if to walk back through the putrid mists of the hallway once again. Turning suddenly, she darted in between the mysterious beings and stepped into the lighted room. As her eyesight adjusted to her suddenly bright surroundings, the walls, and then the contents of the room slowly came into focus. Another figure was in the room with her and as the too-bright light around the figure faded, she began to make out distinct features of the being. Long dark hair and the long flowing gown declared its gender. Curves accentuated this declaration. A feminine, pointed chin, and high cheekbones began to jog her memory drive. The nose was proudly sharp but the being's warm and gentle gaze softened the effect on her features. Trembling, glistening eyes met and both pairs seemed shocked at the resemblance they found in each other. Amelia dimly noted that the two mysterious guards hadn't come in to kick her out. Indescribable joy filled the rest of her mind.

The princess opened her mouth, but her voice refused to be heard. Trembling, she took two tentative steps toward her mother before breaking into a run. She embraced her mother and wept with sobs of joy racking her body. Her mother's arms closed around her and rocked her gently from side to side. Soothed now, she smiled into the achingly familiar face of her mother. Her mother smiled back.

Then the assassin came. Ignoring her, the murderer rushed into the room and stabbed the queen in the side. She was flung back, paralyzed, just as she had been when she was eight. A whimper of horror escaped her as she relived the same death scene again. Her mother begging her to run. A low deep-throated chuckle from the killer. Her mother's blood staining the bear skin rug.

That was a good thing; she had despised that rug anyway. Hysteria bubbled up inside her, threatening to make her collapse into a fit of giggles. She was thinking about blood stains on the rug while her mother was dying right beside her. For some reason, that fact made the whole situation hilarious. Abruptly, the assassin turned and advanced towards her. The threat of a giggle fit disappeared with a gurgle. This wasn't how it had happened! The murderer was supposed to bolt after killing the queen and laughing at her demise. The girl's eyes widened and her pupils dilated in terror. She wanted to move, to scream, to roll away. She couldn't move. Time seemed to slow as she watched the dagger plunge toward her own body.

She was saved from the incoming blow by a blur. It was hard to tell what had happened exactly; all she could tell was that one moment she had been in a room and that the next moment, she could see all of Seyruun's streets and buildings blurring into a continuous stream of colors underneath her. Her rescuer jumped from rooftop to rooftop with inhuman speed, giving no mistake of who it was: Zelgadiss. Finally, after all these years!

Tears constricted her throat and everything she had wanted to say to him disappeared. She stared up at his face. That was okay; she didn't want to talk until she had seen enough of him. From her point-of-view in his arms, she could see that truly his elegantly sloping chin and elfin nose were his best features. His wide, expressive eyes were unfathomable from this angle. A pity. They would make fine rivals for his chin and nose; surely his cute elf-ears couldn't beat the handsomeness of his chin and nose? She stared and she stared, but it seemed like she couldn't get enough to quench her thirst. She was so busy drinking in his image with her eyes that it took her a while to realize her new surroundings. She blinked and glanced around. They were no longer jumping over the city rooftops but on top of a remote and tranquil hill. Soon, Zelgadiss was staring straight back at her. Caught red-handed! Before she could even blush and avert her gaze, Zelgadiss had dropped her onto the grass.

He watched as she pulled herself up, rubbing her sore bottom. He watched as she glared at him and pouted, asking him why he had done that. He watched as she prepared to belt out a justice speech. He watched as she took a good look at him and forgot about her speech. He stood there, watching tears fill her eyes. Silent as ever, he watched as the tears flowed from her eyes, down her face, and onto the ground. Then, her face broke out into an overjoyed smile.

"You're back!" she exclaimed wetly, tears trembling in her voice. Running to him, she gave him her family's trademark bear hug. "What took you so long, huh?" she asked, chuckles coloring her pink. Unbelievably joyful that he was with her again, she smiled into his eyes.

A pang of fear shot through her heart and chased it up her throat. Those warm eyes she had longed to see... they weren't there. Malicious intent filled these eyes and they shone with an evil appetite to hear her pained screams. She took a step back. Zelgadiss, however, chose this moment to return her embrace. He squeezed her tightly to him until she could actually hear her bones squeaking in protest. When she let out a small yelp of pain, she was thrown to the ground. She looked up at Zelgadiss. How could he do this to her?

"Why...?" she managed to choke out. Her rage, sorrow, confusion, and apprehension swirled in a cocktail of emotions fit for a king of Mazoku. As she looked into his crazed eyes, terror held her captive in its embrace. This wasn't her Zelgadiss-san. This was... a monster. He had turned into that which he had strived to escape. She had to get away; there was no telling what he would do to her if he caught her. She got up and started to run as faster than she ever had before.

It wasn't good enough. He caught her easily, and tackled her to the ground. Pinning her to the ground with his body, he smirked. Hungrily, he licked his lips. His eyes gleamed with demonic delight. She still didn't like the way they were looking at her. If his eyes alone wanted to tear her apart and leave her body for the animals to pick at, what would the rest of him do to her? Staring into his malevolent gaze she could only feel disbelief, confusion, and an overwhelming fear that she had lost him forever. What had happened to her Zelgadiss? Why was this demon Zelgadiss attacking her now? The tears trailing down her cheeks betrayed a mere portion of her soul's sorrowful weeping.

He let out a feral growl, and darted in to tear out her neck. She squeezed her eyes shut. This was it, then. This was what Zelgadiss had come for. (Writer's Cut-out; see below A/N)

And she sat up in bed, soaked with sweat. Her sheets were in a tangled heap around her limbs and body. She gasped for air, as if she had been saved from near-drowning. To say that had been scary would be a severe understatement. She couldn't remember the last time her nightmares had filled her with such a realistic sense of dread and urgency. She would not be able to sleep for the rest of the night. Sighing at the prospect of another sleepless night, she jumped out of bed and bounced out of the room in search of something to help shake off the ominous dream.

A cheerful thought told her it was time to take advantage of her royal privileges. At least she could make one of the night-duty maids give her some warm milk and cookies to ease her nerves.

A/N: Uncut edition below. Rated for semi-Mature content. YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED:

He let out a feral growl, and darted in to tear out her neck. She squeezed her eyes shut. This was it, then. This was what Zelgadiss had come for. Another yelp of surprise gurgled through her tears when she felt a moist slimy feeling on her neck. He was licking her neck! She blushed, but soon started to struggle anew. It felt wrong. The sheer intimacy of the situation felt wrong. This couldn't--shouldn't--be happening. Faintly, relaxation peeked into her mind, reminding her that this was a dream. Then, Zelgadiss stopped. He brought his face up to hers again. Wide blue eyes and their dilated pupils could see that his ghastly smirk was wider. Panic washed over her reason and her struggles grew frantic. This wasn't her Zelgadiss-san! Zelgadiss-san would never-

"Liked that, didn't you, whore?" he rasped in a bestial tone completely different from his usual melodious voice. Amelia started to shake her head in time to her inner mantra. NotherZelgadissnotherZelgadissnotherZelgadiss. The beast continued, "Always leaping about in front of me, teasing me, pretending... to be my friend... you've always thought I was a monster, though... Let me tell you something, princess." Here he took a pause to grin, glinting his sharp canines at her.

"You're right!! I'm a demon, a monster, an insatiable brute! And you want to know something else?" Amelia shook her head even faster. He went on, indifferent to her pleas. "You're a damn brainless slut, thinking that I would be easy to charm! You got that? A damn fucking slut..." he continued quietly, mercilessly cutting down her emotional defenses. His steady, hate-filled gaze pierced her heart with each spoken and unspoken word until she couldn't bear it. She turned her face away and closed her eyes. Her tears continued to flow, mercifully allowing her to express the deep sorrow she felt for her one-time friend and for herself. They ran across her face and off of it, where the parched ground thirstily snatched it up.

Had his demonic side completely taken over the human? Why was he saying such nasty things about her? What had she done to him? She didn't deserve this! Her eyes widened as she registered his last line.

"Reap what you sow, bitch." The forest scenery around her blurred into darkness...