Something Lina This Way Comes

Chapter: 1

The New Arrival

I know the title is not that original but oh well.

She looked out the window as the bus continued down the road. Her ruby red eyes looked out amongst the long stretches of road and country. Lina sighed as she waited for her journey to come to an end. She had made up her mind that she needed a change of scenery for her work. Lina Inverse was a well known artist in the city of Sailoon and had made a good living in her profession. But, lately she had lost the spark that she had for her work. She did not know if she had just grown tired of art or all that came with it. Day in and day out she was hounded by reporters, admirers, and other artist wondering what the gothic artist would release next. So here she was on a bus heading out into the country to get away from it all. She had already made arrangements to move into a house in the town of Atlas and stay in the small country town for a while. As the bus finally pulled into to town Lina could not help but catch sight of an old manor home just out from the woods.

The old home had two stories and was in a style that did not match the times of the world around it. The gothic architecture of the manor looked like something out of a horror novel and passed by as the bus pulled into the bus station in the town proper. Lina got off the bus, the only passenger to do so at this stop, and pulled a piece of paper out of her pocket. On the paper where two addresses one was labeled house and the other was labeled for the local bar. Lina looked at her watch and saw that it was well past dinner. She felt her stomach growl and smirked while saying, "Looks like it is the bar for some food."

Lina turned down the street and headed in the direction that she saw the sign for the bar. As she walked down the street she took in the town of Atlas that would be her new home for a while. The town was quiet as compared to the big city that Lina was used to. Most of the shops looked like small family stores that had been the downtown area for generations. Lina walked by a hardware store with Halloween decorations up in the windows and could not help but smile. It was refreshing to see things that felt genuine and not to faux gimmicks of city life. Lina finally came to the bar and walked inside. Inside the light was low with a light haze of smoke hanging in the air. In the back on a raised stage an old gentleman sat and played an old guitar as he sang the blues. Different town folk looked up at the new comer before going back to their meals and conversations. Lina smiled before walking up to the bar and sitting down on a stool. The bartender walked over and asked, "What can I get you?"

Lina smiled before saying, "I'll have whatever is on special."

The bartender nodded as he walked to a order station and punched in the order. After putting in the order the bartender came back to Lina and said, "Well, stranger where did you come from. I've not seen you in town before."

Lina smirked and said, "From Sailoon...I need a vacation from the city."

The bartender smiled before saying, "I see we have a city slicker in our little one horse town. I'm Dan, nice to meet you," Dan replied.

"I'm Lina," Lina answered while extending her hand.

Dan shook Lina's hand as the two got to know each other. Dan looked to be in his thirties with blue eyes and a shaved head. His body was decently muscled and he seemed to exuded friendliness. "So which hotel you staying at?"

"Oh, I'm not," Lina replied before saying, "I set up a deal to rent a house for a while. I plan on being here a while so I thought it would be better that way."

Dan cocked an eye before asking, "What's the address," as he went to pick up Lina's food from the window.

"5 Grey Willow," Lina replied.

Dan set the food down before looking at Lina and saying, "So your the one Rick rented the Blackmor home to. I heard you are supposed to be some kind of famous artist."

Lina blushed before saying, "You could say as much."

"If you know what's good for you you'll not stay in that house," came an older voice from behind Lina.

She turned to see the old man that had been playing and she asked, "What do you mean?"

"That house is directly across from him. If you don't want to be damned then you'll stay away from him," the old man continued.

Dan sighed before saying, "Carl, stop it. She's here to enjoy our town and all you can think of is to scare her with tales of Greywords being the town bogeyman."

Carl looked at Dan and said, "It's true. That Greywords is nothing but the devil in human form."

Lina looked between the two before saying, "What in the world are you going on about?"

Dan laughed before saying, "Carl just got it into his head that the local undertaker is some kinda demon."

Lina smirked before saying, "Well, I'll be sure to be careful."

Lina stood up and laid money on the bar. She grabbed a to go box and put her meal inside before grabbing the glass of pumpkin spic beer and chugged it down. After putting the glass down she turned and said, "You boys have fun with your argument...I'm going to get some rest."

Dan just looked at Carl before mumbling something and going back to work.

Lina walked down the street towards where the house was. As she walked she saw that only the street lights seemed to be on whereas the rest of the town had gone dark for the night. As she approached the area of town her house was located in she stopped as she heard a noise. Lina looked around as the noise came again, this time more audible, in the sound of digging. Lina looked across the street to see the gates of a cemetery as the night mist seemed to pour out of the land that held the dead. As she continued to look she noticed a light coming from beyond a hill within the cemetery gates. She raised an eyebrow as the sound of digging came again. She was about to move towards the gates when she remembered, 'Well, they did say that the undertaker was a bit weird. It's probably just him working late.'

Lina shrugged as she continued down the street. Lina got the crosswalk at the north side of town and crossed to the house that she had rented. The house was two stories with the front east of the house having a circular, tower looking design for that area. The house did not seem like anything special but to Lina she saw it as a perfect place to rest and keep a studio at the same time. She walked up the steps and began to search for the key when she heard a clang coming from the cemetery. She turned to see the silhouette of a man carrying digging tools with a lantern hanging off the back. She watched as the man bent down and placed what looked like a top hat on his head. After adjusting the hat the man began to walk again. He walked in the direction of the house right across the street from Lina's new home. The house was that same manor that she had seen on the way in. Lina nodded and said, "Well, the house fits the profession."

Lina turned back, not wanting to bother the man that was working hard a night, and unlocked her door. She opened the door with a loud creaking of the hinges. She cringed before thinking, 'I'm going to have to get some WD-40 from the hardware store tomorrow.'

Lina walked into the house and turned back to shut the door when she saw the man just standing there. She watched for a moment before putting her hand up to wave before closing the door and turning on the light. Lina sat down at the table, which had been provided with the house as well as most of the furniture, and ate her meal. After a few moments she yawned and moved to the front door. Lina locked the door and headed upstairs to the bedroom. She opened the door to find a big bedroom missing its bed. Lina had asked the bed be removed because she did not feel right sleeping in an old bed. She put down her pack and pulled out an air mattress that she had bought before coming to Atlas. Lina changed into her pajamas, which consisted of a tank top and a pair of cotton shorts, and turned back to the mattress. She quickly inflated that mattress and laid down with the blanket she had brought from home. Lina smiled as she closed her eyes and said, "Finally to get a full night's sleep."

The alarm went off a nine in the morning. Lina stretched out her hand and turned the small travel alarm clock off. Lina got up and began to unpack what she had brought with her. As she was getting her bathroom necessities put up she heard a knock come from downstairs. She turned on her heels and walked down the stairs. As she hit the bottom the knocking came again from the front door. She called, "I'm coming," as she continued towards the door.

Lina unlocked the door and opened it to be met by a young man. Lina looked the young man over as his dress was something out of yesteryear. He was in a full suit which consisted of a pair of black slacks and a purple shirt with a black tie coming from the collar. Over the shirt was a black, woven vest that was covered by a long black duster coat. From the pocket of his vest came a silver chain that connected to a pair of small glasses that rested on the bridge of his nose. The glasses seemed to be more for look then for use since his eyes did not look through the glasses as he watched Lina. To top of the outfit he wore a black top hat with a band of purple around the base. He held a walking cane in his hand. The can was a simple black stick with a bulb of metal at the top. His skin was pale, showing that he either did not spend much time outside or took care to not work in the open sun. His eyes were a deep blue, looking like two sapphires that was locked in his eyes. His hair was blue and came out in wings from his head and one lock of hair falling over his right eye. He locked eyes with Lina before clearing his throat and pulling his top hat from his head. He lowered the hat and bowed slightly before saying, "Good morning."

"Good morning to you to...can I help you," Lina asked somewhat confused.

The man put the hat back on his head and replied, "You are new to the neighborhood so I thought I would bring you a little house warming gift."

Lina watched as the man produced a basket full of fruits and a bottle of wine. Lina accepted the basket before saying, "Thank you. That very nice. By the way I'm Lina Inverse...and you are."

The man pulled a business card from his vest pocket and handed it to Lina while saying, "Zelgadis Greywords...town undertaker."

Lina's eyes got wide before saying, "So that was you I saw in the cemetery last night."

Zel sighed, "Yes, I hope I didn't worry you. Once it gets close to October the local kids like to mess around in the graveyard and it keeps me busy."

Lina smirked. Though the guys dress was way out of date he seemed to be friendly and upstanding. "Well, Zelgadis...is it okay if I just call you Zel," Lina asked.

Zelgadis nodded his approval before Lina continued, "Well, I have a lot of unpacking to do. How about after I'm done getting settled then I come to your place for tea?"

Zelgadis smiled before reaching out and taking Lina's hand in his own. He lowered his head and kissed the top of Lina's hand before saying, "I shall look forward to it."

With that the undertaker turned about began walking down the street while waving back at Lina. Lina stood and watched him leave before looking down at her hand as she felt a blush stain her cheeks. Lina turned back into the house before thinking, 'What a weird...yet nice guy.'

Disclaimer: Any characters or ideas from The Slayers do not belong to me. I am not selling this material, just writing for the heck of it as I go.

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