Title: Demonend
Fandom: Slayers
Pairing: Zelgadis/Xelloss
Rating: M for yaoi content
Warnings: a bit of more-or-less consensual bondage
Word count: around 5300
For Slayers Kinkfest prompt: December 2: -Zelgadis/Xellos: Zel topping, some light bondage - Zelgadis comes to a village that asks him to deal with a demon they've captured: Xellos.
Important Author's Note: This is an AU. (Because if no one else is going to write fanfic for my little imaginary world, I'll just have to do it myself. XD) Takes place after "Try" but before "Revolution."
Zelgadis did his best to ignore the stares and whispers in the common room of the inn. It was nothing unusual, after all. At least the innkeeper in this particular village hadn't tried to tell him there were no rooms available, and the serving girl didn't flinch much when he lowered the scarf over his face so he could eat.
In fact, the people here seemed more nervous and curious than hostile, although the one could quickly turn into the other, as he'd often found. They certainly weren't tactful; several of them stared openly at him, and with his extra sharp hearing he could hear some of their comments.
Nah, doubt he's a demon, then; wouldn't be so obvious about it, sittin' there sippin' tea like a regular, would he? Well, what else would he be with a face like that, then? Dunno, could be a sorcerer like Al says, got caught in some bad magic somehow. A regular demon's more like to 'look fair and feel foul', as they say, if it's tryin' to pass itself off in human company, more like that one Al tangled with, I 'spect. You know they say those mazoku monsters can look about as human as the rest of us are born, if they want to. My bet's on him bein' another half-assed sorcerer like our own blessed idiot Aldred. Pfft, not much better than a demon, then; at least with a flat-out demon you expect what you get!
That was interesting, Zelgadis thought, keeping his head down so they wouldn't guess he'd heard them. He wasn't sure whether to be amused or a little worried, if the villagers were accustomed to incompetent sorcerers as well as monsters. He supposed that was to be expected, so close to city with the rather promising name of Demonend, even if he doubted the legend about the place was true. He remembered Rezo scoffing at the idea of a single man holding off an entire horde of mazoku, saying anyone would be a fool to try such a thing, and as much as he hated to believe anything Rezo had ever said, Zelgadis knew from experience that this was probably true.
Then he heard, well, speak of the devil! and the whispers across the room gave way to an expectant hush. The sound of footsteps coming toward him was accompanied by the jingle and clink of jewels, a wealth of magical ornaments judging by the aura he felt approaching. Far more charms and amulets than any one person had a need for.
Zelgadis sighed. The local sorcerer coming to challenge the bizarre stranger in town, he supposed. He looked up from his meal reluctantly.
It was his turn to stare, for once. The young man standing in front of him actually glittered, adorned with every kind of magical amulet imaginable, covered in rings and bracelets and chains, enchanted jewels of all kinds, literally from head to toe. He radiated an oddly shimmering aura that buzzed against Zelgadis' senses, attuned as he was to magical energy. Potent sorcery, but it was hard to tell which came from the various amulets and which from the young man himself. If he'd created all those magical items himself, he had to be practically on Lina's level.
That was hard to imagine, though. The young man shuffled his feet and fidgeted awkwardly, blushing and blinking as he stared at Zelgadis with wide, green eyes.
"Pardon me, sir," he said. His voice cracked when he spoke. Zelgadis realized he was even younger than he looked; for all that potent magic, he was still merely a teenager.
"You are a sorcerer, sir, if I'm not mistaken?"
Zelgadis nodded cautiously, still half expecting to be run out of town. Instead, the boy let out a sigh of relief; behind him, Zel heard more excited whispers from the ones who'd been debating about what he was.
"You then, perhaps, are experienced in dealing with demons?" the boy said eagerly.
Aha, Zelgadis thought, remembering the whispers about this Al of theirs crossing paths with one, apparently unsuccessfully. At least they didn't seem to think he was a demon himself, this time - unless they wanted to blame him for some monster's attack on their town. In either case, he wasn't sure he wanted to answer that question with the truth. The speaker saw his hesitation and went on in a rush.
"I was really hoping you were, because I'd like to hire a competent sorcerer to deal with a little problem we've got here," he said.
Whispers broke out again behind the boy, along with a bit of grumbling, and he blushed and shuffled his feet even more nervously.
Our problem! Zelgadis heard. Wouldn't be 'our' problem if that Al hadn't brought it here, would it!
Zelgadis smirked, entirely unsympathetic. "You provoked a mazoku or something, and now you're afraid it's going to follow you here and destroy the whole town, I suppose?"
"Well, not exactly," Al said, turning even more red than before. "It's already here, in town. I, uh, captured it, I'm afraid. But now I can't quite figure out what to do with it."
"You did?" Zelgadis blurted out.
Al managed to look both indignant and flustered at the same time. "Yes, I did! Although, well, it was sort of an accident, I guess, in a way. But the problem is, I didn't realize how strong it is. Now I find I can't kill it after all, and I don't dare let it go. I was hoping a more experienced sorcerer might know what the safest course of action would be."
Zelgadis sighed. He couldn't imagine how this quivering young sorcerer had managed to capture a demon at all. It couldn't be all that powerful, but he was not surprised that the kid couldn't kill whatever he'd caught.
"I'll see what I can do," he said. "For a price."
He named a fairly exorbitant amount. It wasn't quite Lina-Inverse-level extortion, but it was still pretty high He didn't know how much trouble this demon might be, and besides that, jobs had been hard to come by in this part of the country, looking as he did. He decided he might as well get as much as he could for this one.
For a moment, he thought he'd priced himself out of the job. Al's mouth dropped open, then he began to stammer that he didn't have that kind of money. Zelgadis was prepared to haggle a bit, but not much if the boy could afford to deck himself out in magical jewels like that. A couple of the whisperers at the back of the room stepped up and offered to cover the rest. Insisted on it, as a matter of fact.
Al slumped with relief and looked like he wanted to hug them, but they shook their heads, scowling at him.
"We're not doing this out of the generosity of our hearts, Al," one of them said. "You put us all at risk, bringing that thing back here, no matter how well you think you've got it bound! Besides, you'll be paying us back. Somehow."
Al nodded and tried a smile at them, but gave it up in the face of their glares. Then all eyes fell on Zelgadis. Now that his price had been accepted, he supposed he'd better go and get the job over with.
"Come on, I'll bring you to him," Al said.
Wondering what he was getting himself into, Zelgadis got up and followed him out of the inn.
What he found locked away in a windowless room off the young sorcerer's lab was the last thing he expected. Almost the last person on earth he wanted to see, in fact.
Even with all his limbs attached, Xelloss looked as bad off as Zelgadis had ever seen him. He crouched on the floor in the far corner of the room, head bowed, barely moving. He looked as if he was in some kind of pain, but absurdly, he was bound only with strings of glittering, clicking beads and jewels, like the ones that adorned the young sorcerer. His arms were pinned at his side by the glittering chains, and bedraggled hair hung over his face. He didn't look up when they entered the little room, but Zelgadis could see his mouth twist in an odd, grim sort of smile.
"Ah, Zelgadis-san! It is you, isn't it? Delicious, as always."
Zelgadis tensed when the mazoku raised his head and started to open his eyes, but he was startled to see that they were pale, only a misty shade of the usual deep purple he'd glimpsed only a few times before. Xelloss seemed to take a deep breath, as if taking in Zel's scent, but he winced a little as he did so.
"Xelloss? Is this really...?" Zelgadis began, but then he stopped. It couldn't be what it seemed. It was ridiculous that these baubles could hold the powerful mazoku in place, weak and trembling like this, and even more absurd that this meek idiot of a sorcerer had managed to bind him at all. He suspected some trick, and wondered if Xelloss had allowed himself to be "captured" in order to lure him here for some reason. He even wondered, for a brief second, if timid Al was in league with him, or more likely, under his control.
Then he noticed, as Xelloss raised his head further, a black gash across one side of his chest. It wasn't a deep or large wound; enough to incapacitate a human, maybe, but it should be no more than a scratch to an astral being like Xelloss. What kind of weapon or spell could even do this, Zelgadis wondered. Surely not something Al had devised or wielded.
"It's a little embarrassing to admit, but yes, I'm afraid it is exactly as it appears," Xelloss said far too brightly, with a crooked grin. "Having said that, I don't suppose I could convince you to take these off, could I?" he asked, so sweetly that Zelgadis would have laughed at him under other circumstances. He even batted his eyelashes. "They may be pretty, but they're really not my style! I would be very grateful if you removed some of them. "
Zelgadis stared at him a moment longer. He wanted to think there was some kind of trick, but it was obvious even to his suspicious eyes that Xelloss was truly bound. Even his typical flirty joking seemed strained.
He turned to Al, who hovered back by the doorway, biting his nails.
"You did this?" Zelgadis asked, incredulously.
Al nodded, a little absently as he looked from one to the other of them. "Uh, wait, you two know each other?" he asked, fidgeting more than ever. Not surprisingly, Zelgadis thought.
"Don't worry, we're not friends," he assured the sorcerer through gritted teeth. "Definitely not."
Xelloss pouted. "Zel-san, how could you say that after all we've been through together!"
"Shut up, Xelloss," he tossed back at the mazoku. "You're not helping."
Al considered them both for a moment, gnawing on his fingers. He apparently decided to believe Zelgadis over a bound and wounded mazoku.
"Well, then, does that mean you know what to do with him?"
You mean, do I know how to prevent him from destroying your village if you let him go, since you're just smart enough to know you don't have a hope of killing him, Zelgadis thought. He didn't bother telling Al that this was a far more dangerous monster than the village could even imagine. He wondered again how this quivering little sorcerer had managed to capture Xelloss in the first place. What were these amulets, anyway? It was a little unsettling.
Seeing Xelloss like this, Zelgadis wasn't even sure what he could do with him, aside from just dragging him away from the village as he was. At least he would have fulfilled that part of his deal with Al and the villagers, and maybe that would be enough for him to get paid.
Of course, he knew he should take advantage of the rare opportunity to rid the world of one of the most dangerous mazoku alive. He wasn't at all certain that would work, though. Even under the circumstances, a good solid Ra Tilt might not be enough to finish Xelloss off, if even Gaav hadn't quite been able to kill him. And, in truth, he was reluctant to try it for other reasons that he'd rather not admit even to himself.
In fact, he had to work very hard to ignore the feelings that were starting to nudge at the back of his mind and curl through his body like a slow flame. Seeing Xelloss kneeling there in front of him, looking up at him like this, brought back far too many of the teasing suggestions Xelloss had flung at him the last few times they'd crossed paths. sensual hints that Xelloss had dropped increasingly sensual hints that he was actually attracted to Zelgadis, and numerous comments and glances that Zelgadis was always certain were only meant to tease and annoy him, certainly not actual offers of intimacy as they pretended to be. Even if Xelloss really would consent to do the things he'd hinted at, he was simply far too dangerous for Zelgadis to consider it, no matter how much the idea secretly appealed to him.
As if he sensed Zelgadis' thoughts, Xelloss tipped his head and looked up at him with something of his usual sly grin. A suggestive gleam lit up his eyes. Zelgadis hoped Al couldn't see that, or the flush that climbed into his own face.
"Fortunately for you, sorcerer," Xelloss said, speaking past him to Al in a low voice that climbed right up Zelgadis' spine, "you happened to come across one of the few humans who could actually 'do' anything with me at all."
"Oh?" Al said, "Really?" He brightened up as if he thought all of his troubles were over and started backing out the door before Zelgadis had a chance to contradict Xelloss' words. "Aha, well! Isn't that fortuitous! I'll just leave you to deal with him, then, Master Demon-sorcerer, sir, just as we agreed. Excellent!"
He rushed out and the door clanged shut behind him. The sound of hurried footsteps in the laboratory outside the room quickly faded away, and Zelgadis heard another door slam shut.
He turned back from watching Al leave to glare down at Xelloss. The mazoku barely raised his head, just enough to watch him from under the shadow of the dark hair falling over his face.
"Now that we're alone, Zelgadis-san, the question is, what do you want to do with me?"
Zelgadis hissed, furious at the mocking grin on the mazoku's lips. He took a step forward, gripping the hilt of his sword.
"What do you think I want, you damn mazoku bastard!" he snapped.
He hoped that the show of anger would cover up his real reaction to the suggestion Xelloss seemed to be making, just as he always did, every time Xelloss had teased him with the same kind of suggestion. He was certain that was exactly why Xelloss kept doing it, but he had decided long ago that it was better to feed the mazoku with the negative energy of his anger than to let him see how much he desired what Xelloss pretended to offer.
There was no way Xelloss could really mean it. But seeing him like this - on his knees, powerless, and still offering the same hints - this time the attraction of the idea was more than Zelgadis could hide under rage. Xelloss leaned toward him with a barely audible sigh, as if breathing in a delicious aroma. The beaded chains binding him clicked and rattled, and he paused, lowering his head so his eyes were hidden. His lips curved in a grim smile.
"Your emotions are so delicious, Zelgadis-san! But unfortunately, these..." He shook himself a little to make the jeweled chains rattle, and winced when they did. "Ah, you see, these do prevent me from enjoying them as much as I would like to."
Zelgadis shuddered. It was oddly disturbing to see Xelloss bound and subdued like this, but it was also incredibly arousing.
He reached out his hand and touched fine, black hair. Xelloss went completely still, and Zelgadis drew in a breath through his teeth. It might have been a mistake to touch him, he thought; now he couldn't draw his hand away, and it was too late to hide his reaction this time. He took another step, and at the same time, curled his hand around the back of Xelloss' head. The dark strands glided like silk between his rough stone fingers as he nudged Xelloss forward.
Xelloss didn't resist at all, only leaned up slightly so that his face was a breath away from Zelgadis' crotch.
"Zelgadis-san," Xelloss said, softly; he sounded pleased, relieved even. "If you would only unbind my hands, at least, so I can touch you..."
Zelgadis almost groaned out loud simply from the low sound of his voice, seductive and longing. Whether Xelloss meant it or was merely putting on a very good act to get himself free, he didn't even care, as long as he could really get this...
He stooped down and unwound the beads that bound Xelloss' hands to his sides, but made sure to leave most of the strands twisted around his body. With what sense and caution he had left, he looped one strand around his neck, and pulled the end in his fist like a leash.
He was surprised to see Xelloss shudder and wince every time the beads shifted and clattered, as if the mere sound of them and the touch of them trailing across his body was actually painful. There was definitely magic in them, some strange but potent spell he couldn't identify, but Zelgadis didn't care to try to figure it out at the moment, or to worry about the implication of a spell powerful enough to bind a mazoku priest like this.
His thoughts were not clear enough to think about it, anyway, especially as soon as Xelloss' hands were free to reach up and touch him. Any worry he had that Xelloss would use the opportunity to attack him, either physically or with some mazoku spell, vanished at the first touch of hands on his thighs. Stone skin should hardly feel such a light touch, palms and fingertips pressed against his legs through his trousers, but there was more heat and weight in that touch than any human hand could have. Zelgadis did let out a groan then. It had been so long since he had felt a touch like this - in fact, he had never felt such a sensuous touch as this, except in his imagination.
It was almost more than he could bear, even though all Xelloss did for a while was caress his legs through his pants, running his palms up Zelgadis' thighs to his waist. If this was meant to reassure Zelgadis that he really meant no harm, that wasn't exactly the effect it had on his body. Xelloss leaned even closer, with a soft chuckle as Zelgadis' arousal became more obvious. Even that sound excited Zelgadis, but it also made him a little nervous. He twisted the jeweled leash in his hand, pulling it up a little tighter around Xelloss' throat. Xelloss hissed as if it burned him, but he sidled closer to Zelgadis on his knees without hesitation.
Zelgadis only noticed that the mazoku priest's gloves were gone, vanished like the illusion they were, when Xelloss started to pull his pants down, and it was suddenly skin against bare, stone skin. He felt every touch. Xelloss had to be using some kind of astral magic to make him feel so acutely, just as if they were both human.
He couldn't make sense of that, either. All that mattered was that when Xelloss leaned in and slid warm lips over the tip of his erection, he could definitely feel that. The heat and pressure of Xelloss' mouth were perfect. Slowly, Xelloss sucked in the entire length, as if he actually savored the taste and the feel of rough skin on his tongue.
Zelgadis curled his fingers at the back of Xelloss' head and groaned with the pleasure of it. A sense of relief flooded through him after resisting for so long, trying not to want this, trying not to let himself feel aroused at the mere idea of Xelloss touching him like this, and trying not to want to touch Xelloss, so certain that Xelloss could never want anything more from him than pain and anguish. Now it was clear that Xelloss wanted him, relished his arousal, and not merely for his anger or fear or any other negative emotion - although Zelgadis also still had plenty of those feelings too; fear when he remembered how dangerous Xelloss really was, and loathing when he looked down at his own hideous body.
What Xelloss was doing to him was nearly enough to sweep those feelings aside. Zelgadis touched Xelloss, finally, as he'd wanted to do for much longer than he cared to admit, fingers threading through his hair and caressing the side of his face. Gradually, he grew confident enough to unwind more of the glittering chains that bound the mazoku, giving him more freedom to move, but he left that one strand looped around his throat and the other end clutched in his fist. Xelloss didn't even seem to mind. He really did seem eager to touch him and to give him pleasure, and for the first time Zelgadis almost began to believe that all the teasing might have been serious underneath. Maybe it made sense in a way, he thought; only another monster would want a grotesque creature like him.
Coherent thought began to crumble as Xelloss used his mouth and hands to coax every shred of pleasure from his body. Zelgadis gave in to sensation and the rush of pure lust. His own harsh breath echoed in the small chamber, along with the hungry, wet sound of Xelloss' mouth sucking on him. He groaned out loud, tugged on the beaded leash wound around his fist and thrust deeper into the mazoku's surprisingly hot mouth. Xelloss didn't resist, only took him in eagerly, one hand caressing him and the other clutching his hip as if to encourage him to demand even more.
Aching desire gradually built into an urgent need for release, but just when he thought he'd reached the peak of arousal, Xelloss slowed down. With one last slurping suck, he pulled his mouth away to kiss and lick and nuzzle at him, still caressing his cock with his hands but with his nose pressed against the rough skin underneath. His tongue darted out to curl around Zelgadis' tight balls, as if he just had to taste and feel more of him.
Zelgadis indulged him, for a little while, then growled and tugged on his hair as a reminder. Xelloss immediately went back to sucking, with a contented little sigh and a grin lifting the corners of his lips - and then held off again a minute later, just as Zelgadis reached the brink again. The third time it happened, it occurred to Zelgadis that he was still being teased after all.
With a growl of frustration, he pulled on Xelloss' hair and yanked the bead chain around his throat, hard enough to startle Xelloss. The mazoku jerked and let out a gasp, eyes opening wide; he leaned tightly against Zelgadis' body and shuddered for a second. Then he lowered his head, his hair falling like a shadow on Zelgadis' thigh. He pressed his lips to Zelgadis' rough skin and sighed.
"I'm sorry, Zelgadis-san. That feels wonderful, your beautiful anger, but I'm not trying to make you angry for my own sake. I only want to make this last as long as possible - in case I never get to do it again..."
Zelgadis was startled by the sound of his voice. He actually sounded wistful, if such a feeling was possible for a mazoku.
"All this time, you really did want this?" he said.
He felt just a little bit badly, both regretful and even a little guilty that he kept turning Xelloss down, if that was true. Xelloss hesitated a second before he answered.
"Yes. All this time I've wanted you, my dear chimera. Probably a great deal more than I should."
Zelgadis stared down at him. He'd never expected to hear such an admission from Xelloss, not even mockingly, and this sounded strangely sincere. He decided to believe him, at least for now.
He pulled Xelloss' head up and forward again by the hair, but only roughly enough to answer the longing he heard in Xelloss' voice. He was startled to sense that Xelloss was still weak; that didn't seem to be an act at all. It made him realize that he could force Xelloss to continue, could probably make him do even more, if he wanted to.
He just pushed the mazoku's mouth back where he wanted it. At the same time, he let his anger flare up again, and he growled, but gently.
"Fine, then, mazoku. As long as you get me off eventually, take as long as you want..."
Xelloss was startled; Zelgadis could feel it in the little jerk against the leash, surprised enough to hesitate a moment longer. Then he smiled, another odd, crooked smile, and went back to sucking on Zelgadis even more eagerly than before.
Zelgadis shuddered with the pleasure of it, but he continued to snarl and glared down at Xelloss as long as he could focus. If his anger was what Xelloss enjoyed, he decided he might as well give the mazoku some pleasure in return.
It seemed to work. Xelloss moaned a little and clutched at him, fingers digging into hard stone flesh at the back of his legs, pulling him deeper into his mouth, sucking harder and faster to bring Zelgadis to the brink of release again, and this time, only held him there for a moment before bringing him crashing over the edge.
He wasn't sure if he screamed, or if he might have even cried out Xelloss' name when he came, hard, in the mazoku's hot, hungry mouth. Afterward, while he tried to catch his breath again, half held up by Xelloss leaning against his legs with arms clutched around his waist, he was almost certain he heard Xelloss groan his name.
It was certainly the very last thing he would have expected when the nervous young sorcerer had approached him at the inn, but he soon found out that, as far as Xelloss was concerned, it was only the beginning.
Several hours later, it seemed, he was lying pressed up against Xelloss' back on the floor - it hardly mattered to either of them that it was cold, hard stone, after all - and he'd finally recovered breath and wits enough to remember to wonder how this could have happened.
"Tell me you didn't let that wimpy sorcerer capture you on purpose, Xelloss, just in case I happened to be in the vicinity to 'rescue' you," he said.
Xelloss wiggled back against his chest, encouraging him to press his face into soft hair at the back of his neck. He was careful not to rattle the single strand of beads that remained around his neck; the rest of the jeweled chains had been flung away into a far corner of the room.
"Oh dear no, not at all, Zel-san!" Xelloss said cheerfully. "It's quite a happy coincidence that you decided to pass through this particular village in your travels. I certainly didn't 'let' Al capture me, though. He happened to come upon me a few miles outside the village, and... well, let's just say he found me at disadvantage, as much as I'm embarrassed to admit it!"
Zelgadis suddenly remembered the gash he'd seen on Xelloss when he first arrived. Arms wrapped around the mazoku's body - his surprisingly solid and warm body - he ran his hand over the bare skin of his chest and shoulder. There was no evidence of that wound now. Evidently the miasma Xelloss had absorbed from him had been enough to counteract the weakening effect of the spell-binding chains. Even so, Xelloss shivered a little when he placed his palm against the place where the cut had been.
He pushed himself up on one elbow and leaned over to look down at the mazoku. He looked entirely back to normal, as far as Zelgadis could tell. He'd never seen Xelloss without clothes before, after all.
"You were wounded?" he asked, curious and a little worried. Xelloss, one of the highest-ranking mazoku alive, was not an easy creature to injure, as he knew all too well. "How on earth? By whom?"
Xelloss didn't answer directly, as Zelgadis knew he should have expected with a question like that.
"I've been sent to this area to investigate the source of some strange weapons," he said after a moment. He scowled; evidently he hadn't expected that the weapons in question would actually affect him.
"Does it have something to do with that legend about a great battle between a human warrior and the mazoku at this place called Demonend?" Zelgadis asked. "That story's not really true, is it?"
If it was, he fully expected Xelloss to deny it or claim it was all a secret, and leave it at that.
"Ah, you've heard that story, have you? I shouldn't be surprised. Whether there's a connection or not is what I've been sent to discover. It's certain that these," he paused and gave a little shake to the single strand of beaded chain that still looped around his neck, with a little wince when it jangled softly. "These ornaments that our friend Al is so fond of are connected to Demonend somehow, at any rate. Besides that," he said, but then stopped.
Zelgadis narrowed his eyes. "It's a secret, I suppose?" he said sourly.
"Well, I'm not sure I want to tell you this part, Zelgadis-san, if you don't already know! The fact is, these Relics, as they're called, are also said to have remarkable healing powers, and to be able to break curses and even transform humans, in some cases... so the rumors go..."
Zelgadis stared down at him, searching for signs that Xelloss had fallen to taunting him again. He had to be suspicious of any information about magic that came from Xelloss' lips, of course, but this story did sound a little familiar, now that he thought about it. Then another thought occurred to him, and he narrowed his eyes and studied Xelloss' face suspiciously.
"Why are you trying to manipulate me into coming with you to Demonend?" he asked.
Xelloss' mouth fell open, as if he was shocked at such an unreasonable accusation. A second later, though, he gave up the pretense of innocence and grinned, and reached back to run his hand up Zelgadis' thigh.
"I thought I just made the reason for that fairly obvious, didn't I? Do I need to prove again that I want you? I'll be glad to..."
He twisted around and pulled Zelgadis down to kiss him, and his hands began to wander over what was already becoming familiar territory.
Zelgadis was fairly well convinced already, but he let Xelloss demonstrate the point again anyway.
~ the end ~
Comments? groans, giggles, bricks? Please let me know, because I hate to think I'm having all this fun all by myself! XD