Title: The Boy in the Garden
Part Two in the 'Human!Xellos' series. Sequel to Search for the Aqualord.
Authors: Chrissy Sky and Rose Thorne
Pairing: Xellos/Zelgadis established relationship; minor Lina/Amelia.
Rating: M overall
Warnings: Yaoi, minor yuri, kid fic. (Not mpreg. This means there is an actual child.)
Summary: A year later, Zelgadis finds something strange in their garden.
AN: This is not a stand-alone piece. It won't make much sense if you haven't read the other one first.
Chapter One: One Year Later
If asked, Xellos would answer honestly—because he never really lied—and say it started with the pies.
Dragon killing stews aside, he had no actual cooking skills. He liked food, but learning how it was prepared never crossed his mind until they began doing odd jobs around Avalo.
Once deciding on a plot of land for the construction—next to the small river as Zelgadis wanted—they needed to earn money to get started. There were many valuable items in the shrine they could have used for trade, but neither of them wanted to do that unless it was an emergency. All of the items had a personal significance as well as a monetary one. As the Water Dragon Lord had helped them a great deal, neither felt comfortable using the shrine's treasures as cash.
So they got jobs instead. Zelgadis began hanging around the local masonry and blacksmiths, impressing the hardened country people with his willingness to work, his strength, and his skill in doing even the most obscure of tasks. He often brought home more supplies than money, but the chimera did not mind this so much. It just meant he could get to work on their home all the quicker.
He would not let Xellos partake in these activities—he still worried that the new human would hurt himself too easily. Xellos could hardly blame him for the concern, though part of him rankled at being thought of as weak.
"I didn't say you're weak," Zelgadis said, placating. "But you're still adjusting to being human, to having limits, and this is hard work. Just promise me you'll take it slow, okay?"
He had shrugged, kissed Zelgadis' cheek to see him off to work, and went about town to find work for himself.
While he had never been what anyone would call altruistic, Xellos frequently found himself assisting those less fortunate than others: Elderly women who needed aid around the house and whose grown children were not around to do it; or mothers with young children who needed similar help because their husbands were currently farming or working in the mines.
After he had gotten passed initial suspicions of adultery—the villagers of Avalo had less of a problem with homosexuals, but Gods help you if you were after their women—Xellos began to receive recurrent smiles from them. They too could not always pay for his help, so they gave food instead. This became how he and his chimera continued to eat regular meals. Favorite items submitted by the elderly women were pies.
Zelgadis especially liked them and seeing his obvious pleasure, Xellos decided to ask the women how they were made. He hoped that when their home was completed, he could make them for his lover. With their guidance, his first culinary experiments often met with the chimera's approval.
"I'm gonna make you a big kitchen," Zelgadis promised one evening and, as whenever he talked about their home, Xellos eagerly expressed his happiness about it. (Repeatedly. In bed.)
They remained at the inn. It ate up what little money they had, but sleeping on their property in a tent became impractical when the colder weather hit. As the temperature dropped, the ground was soon covered in snow. Xellos decided on his first cold morning that he did not like the cold. Not at all. He had quickly crawled back into bed.
Zelgadis had gotten up and stretched with no trouble, of course. "Maybe I should camp out there alone. Keep an eye on our supplies."
Xellos admitted to pouting heavily at this suggestion and perhaps mentally grumbling about his lover's physiology. "You are not leaving me here to get cold every night, Zelgadis-san."
"Xellos, I'm not exactly warm. I don't retain heat."
"You do if there's a fire, my dear."
The chimera had sighed, but there were no more suggestions about spending their evenings apart.
With the cold weather came illness, and with it other jobs for them to perform. Xellos knew some healing spells, but Zelgadis was able to call upon years of experience with the Red Priest Rezo. He stirred up potions with herbs and roots, things even the villagers had never seen before, as well as healing magic. While they were not as skilled as Rezo had been, they rarely lost a patient.
Some were grateful for the assistance, but it wasn't as though they had not survived winters before. More often than not, his elderly teachers had a few helpful tips for keeping Xellos warm.
Moreover, he worried the healing would remind Zelgadis too much of the past. "Does this bother you?" he asked eventually. "The reminder of Rezo-san…"
Zelgadis shrugged. "I'm still mad at him. I'll always be mad. But I don't hate him quite as much as I used to. I haven't since the whole Hellmaster Jar thing."
Xellos decided to stay close to Zelgadis the rest of that day, which the chimera didn't seem to mind.
He had wanted to keep working, but being exposed to illness and chill caused Xellos to catch a minor cold himself. Zelgadis all but strapped him to the bed and, when he argued, they had one of their rare arguments.
"I know you don't want to be seen as weak," Zelgadis had growled, "but if you don't rest, you'll get worse! Doesn't that seem weaker to you than sitting here and letting yourself get better?"
Xellos may have pouted then too. "Oh very well."
The benefit of bed rest turned out to be Zelgadis, with his stronger immune system, waiting on him until he recovered.
"Spoiling you is kind of fun," Zelgadis had remarked.
"If you really wanted to spoil me, you'd walk around in front of me naked."
A blush and snort. "Well, you must be feeling better if you're flirting."
"Ahahaha…"
Learning his limitations was never an easy task. It was hard, but Xellos had to remind himself to let Zelgadis carry some of the burden in their lives. He could not do it all alone. Remembering that was the key, though he still fell prey to his urge to take care of his lover.
Zelgadis continued to work through the winter on their home, as much as time and the weather allowed, and by spring they moved in.
Seeing the blueprints were one thing, but the second Xellos finally laid eyes on the finished product—Zelgadis made him stay off the site as he got closer to completion, wanting it to be a surprise—he absolutely loved it. The front door opened up to their dining room, with the promised kitchen off to the side. Further on were the sitting room, a small study they could share, and three bedrooms. (Two were spares for their friends and the master bedroom was the larger of the three.)
Though there had only been a few pieces of furniture at the time, Xellos decided to show Zelgadis his appreciation, with eagerness, all over the house. The chimera quickly learned to appreciate sex outside the bedroom.
Any remaining distrust from the villagers seemed to be gone, and Zelgadis grew a little more comfortable around them. It was not easy for him; even on the hottest days he still walked around town with his hood and mask firmly in place. Xellos knew there was often a smile under his mask though, so he considered it progress.
Nor did they contend Zelgadis and Xellos' right to the shrine. Even before Lina and company first come to Avalo, the villagers had a dislike for the shrine. It caused an almost constant disturbance as sorcerer after sorcerer would try to get inside, and would almost always be cursed. Sorcerers continued to travel to the shrine, but now the villagers turned them away. The shrine, they claimed, belonged to their new neighbors. Xellos and Zelgadis decided to put up some new protections around it nevertheless, just in case.
Other than the occasional sorcerer showing up to bother them about their ownership of the ancient structure, their lives progressed peacefully. Zelgadis began working on the garden before the summer heat truly came upon them, as well as building a small coop for chickens. Xellos kept busy on the translations of the Ryuzoku books; already having two out on the market by then, he was able to support them reasonably well on the proceeds.
He had been tempted to publish them under his true name, Priest of the Greater Beast Xellos, but that would have raised too many questions that he would rather not answer. Besides which, he was not the Greater Beast's servant any longer. As he pondered the dilemma, Zelgadis came up with the easiest (and most meaningful) solution.
"You know," Zelgadis murmured, suddenly becoming engrossed in gazing at one of the manuscripts' rough drafts. "You know, you could always call yourself Xellos Greywords."
Xellos had been so pleased by the suggestion, he nearly knocked the chimera off the couch. He settled shamelessly in his lap. "Are you really sure?"
Zelgadis blushed and smiled, setting the manuscript aside to hold him close. "Of course I am."
Xellos still planned to marry Zelgadis and make it proper. The chimera was growing skittish about actual wedding plans though, so Xellos allowed it to be set aside for the time being. His chimera seemed happy enough as they were and Xellos found a strange sort of fulfillment in Zelgadis' happiness. In the meantime, he kept himself busy with the books, and with his cooking experiments.
Another project he was working on was about to come to fruition. Xellos was pleased about it since it had sort of landed in his lap one morning, figuratively. He had no idea how it would turn out, which was the only part of the 'project' that he didn't like—too many uncertain variables. Xellos still felt reasonably confident about it though; and all he had to do was not say anything. Zelgadis was about to discover it on his own.
Bringing home those pies that made him fully realize it. He wanted Zelgadis to be happy, so he had to make their life together as perfect as he could.
Zelgadis was clearly irritated when he walked into the kitchen. His travel gear was stored away and instead he wore the plain clothing he used for yard work, items that Xellos did not mind him getting dirty. "Something keeps messing up the garden," he announced, dirt-covered hands fisted and his rock brow furrowed.
Xellos knew he took pride in the garden. He turned away from his current food experiment on the stove and wiped his hands on his frilly pink apron, attempting to look surprised. "An animal, perhaps? Were there tracks?"
"None," the chimera confirmed, wiping the dirt off his hands with a dishrag. "I don't know what it is. I think one of the chickens is missing, too."
Xellos hummed to let Zelgadis know he was listening and spooned up some of the stew he was cooking. "Here, try this."
Zelgadis stepped closer and allowed Xellos feed him with the spoon. He made a face, looking at him uncertainly through wire bangs. "What is it?"
"Lizard stew!" Xellos proclaimed cheerfully.
Zelgadis made another face. "Why?"
"It looked so big when I saw it at the market, and this recipe sounded interesting." He had actually substituted the lizard for what the recipe truly called for, besides adding a few other ingredients on his own. "Does it taste like snake?"
"A little," Zelgadis said, looking a little pained. "You'll recall I didn't really like that much either."
Xellos affected a pout and got a kiss from his chimera.
"Not fond of it," Zelgadis murmured against his lips. "Sorry."
Xellos shrugged, no less cheerful for the honesty. "Ah well. One never knows until one tries, yes? I could always substitute it with rabbit."
The shaman brightened. "You know I like that. This'd probably work better with it. Minus the lizard, of course."
Xellos nodded. Part of his cooking experiments, while many were unusual, was to figure out what worked, what didn't work, and why. He wasn't offended by Zelgadis turning the lizard down. Xellos wouldn't make his lover eat things he didn't like in order to appease his own ego. Such a thing might have been beneath him even as a Mazoku.
"As it happens, I bought a rabbit this morning as well!"
Zelgadis grinned, shaking his head and looking amused. "Okay. Though, you know I could always set up some snares near the stream."
Xellos tilted his head in confusion. "You are tempting me with fish? I'm perfectly fine with the rabbit." Fish was one of his personal favorites.
The chimera blinked at him, for a moment just as confused, and then he laughed. "Well, I could fish, but I was talking about wild rabbit. It's cheaper."
'Snares' as in for rabbits, not for fish. Xellos felt his face grow warm at the misunderstanding and turned to face the stove, busying himself with turning off the burner and hiding his blush. "Ah."
He disliked when things like this happened. While he had spent hundreds of years among humans, he occasionally made errors like this.
"Hey, it's okay, Xellos." Zelgadis came closer again, lightly rubbing his shoulders and finding the places his muscles ached sometimes. "You don't need to be embarrassed about something this small."
"I am not embarrassed."
A soft kiss against his shoulder. "Of course not."
Xellos found himself laughing and leaning back into Zelgadis. His chimera had certainly domesticated him and it did not bother him one bit.
"Mmm… There are magical traps we can place around the garden," he said, returning to the matter at hand. "It was in that book we ordered a few weeks ago."
The small office and sitting area were quickly filling with books, and not just ones for research. Both of them had always had the desire to learn, but for the first time they could really explore it. They mail ordered all sorts of magical texts from Atlas City, and Amelia regularly sent interesting books from Saillune. Their collection was growing at a fast rate and covered a wide area of topics, not all of them about magic.
Zelgadis pulled away to let him clean up and remove his apron. "That's a good idea. Might be something you can experiment with, huh?"
"Trying to get me out of the kitchen, hm?" he asked in return, amused.
Zelgadis smiled. "Well, we might catch something for the kitchen, too."
"True. How big would you say it is?" Xellos asked as he left the stove to get the particular book he spoke of to his chimera.
He already had an idea, but Zelgadis did not need to know just yet.
Zelgadis shrugged. "Couldn't find any prints, but given the amount it's eaten, it's either multiple things or it's about the size of a dog."
Xellos nodded as he checked with the index and flipped to the correct page. "I can make the traps big enough to capture something the size of a large dog. If you would not mind throwing out the rest of that stew, I shall set the traps."
"I don't mind," Zelgadis assured with a smile.
Together they walked outside, Zelgadis with the pot, Xellos with the book. While Zelgadis threw the stew to the eager chickens, who did not seem to care that it was made with lizard, Xellos began casting spells. He started around the chicken coop, since Zelgadis thought they were missing one, and then continued doing so in the garden.
A breeze blew and his hair, which had grown in the past year, got in his face no matter how much he brushed it aside. It was well passed his shoulders and crawling down his back, even after trimming. He liked the length and thought he would keep letting it grow.
Stone fingers touched him from behind, taking hold of his hair and gently tying it away from his face. Xellos started but didn't pull away, out of habit. Part of the reason he liked the length was because Zelgadis had started to do things like this.
He liked the attention.
Xellos smiled over his shoulder. "Thank you, my dear."
"No need for it to interfere with your work." Zelgadis smiled back. "All done?"
"I believe so. Show me where the damage is?"
Zelgadis led him through the rows of vegetables to the area where he was growing carrots and potatoes. Crouching, Zelgadis pointed to some disturbed soil. "Something's been digging. Here, and over here. Tomatoes are missing, too. And some of the strawberries are torn up over there."
Xellos glanced toward the forest that surrounded their property. Their little thief was nowhere to be seen, but that did not mean it wasn't there, watching. Normally he would have gone out of his way to end such a thing, but circumstances made it necessary for the time being. The traps would stop the disturbance at any rate.
"It could be a large fox," Zelgadis went on, "but I didn't think they'd go after anything but the chickens. Only one of those is missing."
"Yes, very strange," Xellos agreed before grasping Zelgadis' wrist, tugging him up. "Let's go inside and start dinner. It's still a little hot out here anyway."
Zelgadis agreed and he grabbed the cooking pot where he had left it. "Need anything from the garden?" he asked before they got too far.
"I have leftover from this stew." He offered a sheepish smile. "Since I thought there was a good chance you wouldn't like it."
Zelgadis chuckled, grinning openly. "Lina'll visit again eventually. I give you permission to try it on her."
Xellos beamed. "Do I have to mention what it is?"
"She likely won't ask. I'll pretend to eat it if you make my portion with rabbit."
"Of course, dear," Xellos giggled, walking with him arm in arm back to the house. He was well aware that their relationship with Lina was more like quarrelling siblings than friends. Lina hit him less often, as per Zelgadis' grumpy requests, so she had to content herself with teasing.
Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed a quick rustle from the bushes near the forest. Zelgadis did not seem to see it so Xellos decided not to mention it.
They walked inside and Xellos took the pot, cleaning it quickly in the sink. Zelgadis washed his hands in the soapy water before dropping a quick kiss on his cheek.
"Let me go get cleaned up." He gestured to his clothing. "I had to put the garden back in order, and I got a little stew on me when I gave it to the chickens."
"That's fine, dear. I can start."
Zelgadis disappeared, heading toward the in-ground bath he had built for the house. Theirs was one of the few homes in Avalo with indoor plumbing. He was very proud of it; when he originally had the idea of a little 'cottage' he had not imagined anything like this. But it was perfect in every way.
Filling the now-clean pot with fresh water, he sat it back on the stove to begin again. He followed the same steps he had taken before, and it was not long before Zelgadis returned to help him chop vegetables.
"The trap spells have an alarm designed into them," Xellos told him. "We should hear it when the animal is caught."
Zelgadis nodded and, when Xellos brought the purchased rabbit out of the cellar, mostly watched him gut and skin the creature. It was a fairly gruesome task and he almost worried what Zelgadis saw in him as he did things like this. Did he think about the lives Xellos had taken as a Mazoku, of the blood he had (metaphorically and – at the moment – literally) on his hands?
But no such shadows of doubt ever crossed his face. Whenever the subject of Xellos' former duties surfaced, Zelgadis seemed merely curious. He only got irritated with him when reminded of the times during their journeys when he kept Zelgadis from reading the Claire Bible manuscripts. While it had never been a personal offense, Zelgadis had taken it as such at the time. Xellos understood that but he would continue to defend his actions as being necessary.
As he finished, Zelgadis took the entrails without comment, carrying them too out to the chickens. When he returned, Xellos asked if he wanted to do something with the fur. "I wouldn't know how to sew it into anything, but I dislike wasting things."
"Yeah," Zelgadis said. "If nothing else, we can sell it."
Xellos sat it aside after cleaning the blood off of it as well as he could.
They worked together getting everything into the pot, though they spent a lot of time sneaking glances at each other. They often did this while preparing meals, which seemed dangerous with sharp instruments in their hands, but they hadn't cut themselves yet.
"My beautiful Zelgadis," he murmured softly, watching his chimera drop sliced potatoes into the pot.
Zelgadis blushed and smiled, seemingly amused. "Are you trying to distract me?"
"Would I do that?" he responded coyly.
"You can't wait until after dinner?" Zelgadis asked instead of answering.
Xellos giggled. "I can. I just like watching you." He lightly bumped his hip against Zelgadis'.
Zelgadis blushed and finished the tomatoes. "I know."
When they were done, Xellos covered it with a lid and wiped his sweaty brow with the back of his hand. The kitchen got very warm with the stove on. There were cooling spells, but the stove's heat fought them valiantly.
Once they cleaned up the counter and set the knives in the sink, Xellos let Zelgadis pull him away to the dining room. The chimera opened a window so that they could take advantage of the breeze outside.
Xellos rested his head in his arms on the windowsill, staying close, and noted the problem with the cooling spells aloud.
He smiled when he felt Zelgadis toy with the end of his impromptu ponytail. "I know. I'll figure something out."
"No need, dearest. From what I've learned, a warm kitchen is normal."
Xellos made a soft noise as Zelgadis continued playing with his hair, then giggled as he rubbed the end against his neck.
"Tickles," he noted, squirming a little. Tickling was very odd. It was not a bad sensation yet he had no control over his reaction to being tickled. Zelgadis seemed very fond of his reactions when he did it.
Zelgadis smiled and looked as though he would have liked to tickle him more, but the sound of a bell ringing stopped him. "Guess that's the alarm?"
"Oh my, I should think so. Shall we go see?"
Zelgadis nodded and they walked outside. The food would be fine on its own for the time being so Xellos was not worried about it. It was more important to get their little thief out of the trap before he accidentally hurt himself.
Naturally, his lover was very shocked when they followed the sound of the bell to the garden and found a small boy caught in the magical field.
TBC! Please remember to review.