*Disclaimer: Slayers belongs to Mr. Kanzaka Hajime, Araizumi Rui, Tkyo TV soft, Fumination, etc, etc... I don't own anything of Slayers franchise. This is just a fanwork to be happy reading it.
*Author Notes: This is a contest story. Basically "What if Miwan would have been a real woman instead a man?" from NEXT-Ep 17. This story follows the events of that "drag" episodie, but this time Miwan is a real woman, and we know Zelgadiss felt very attracted by her in that episodie. Basically this explains what would happen in such case. I talked with my friend Nadessiko (another fanfic author), about this, so we got a conclussion. This story is, indeed, the narration of that conclussion. So enjoy it!
Also, special thanks to Earthstar-chan, who beta readed this form me, correcting the typos and grammar mistakes. Thank you so much.
On this chapter, the first part is tied with the anime episodie, but events are totally changed in order to turn Miwan into a woman. Coments and constructive critizism are most welcome.
Chapter3- My Decision.
Zelgadiss had arrived to a certain place in the mountain forest. It wasn't too far from Femille's capital city, but certainly it wasn't some usual place. At first, it could get mistaken for any mountain's lake, but it wasn't anything like that: the place was very quiet, the water was dark and crystalline, and certainly there weren't any of those annoying dark flies and sand flies that filled places like that; the birds seemed to be quiet around there; even with his sharp ears, he couldn't catch any of the typical sounds in a place like that. It meant that spring wasn't a common lake, which turned out to have a big carved monolith in square shape placed in the center of the lake itself.
Was this the Purification Spring that Zelgadiss had heard those guards talk about?
He didn't know, but he saw how Miwan, without taking off her shoes, entered in the water and headed quietly towards the monolith in question.
"What's she doing?" Zelgadiss wondered. If that lake was the Purification spring, then shouldn't Miwan be completely avoiding that place?
The answer came out when the Femille's princess rolled up her dark skirt and pulled out a big spiky mace, and then she raised it with obvious intentions.
Zelgadiss reacted before she made the fatal strike. Doing that wouldn't solve her problem, but it also would spoil the reason he had come to this wrecked country.
"Miwan!!" he shouted, this time not hiding his natural voice.
The Femille's princess stopped mid-air. She was surprised to hear that male voice, but she knew several things about her kingdom and she also knew who could be the owner of that voice because she already had heard it several times on that intense day. Even perhaps she was too ashamed of what she was going to do. However…
"Do not do that. I know what you're trying to do; but even if you destroy that holy object, nothing would change for you!"
Miwan didn't dare move. It was truth, so terribly truth. She had thought that she'd destroy the object that would make her to be a priestess, and then things will be different for her; but Lulu –if it was her- has made clear it won't be possible. How could that female elf be so right? Or better, what she could do know? Finding herself in a cul-de-sac, she dropped the mace into the water and began to cry quietly. What could she do now? Her dreams had finished just before even beginning.
Zelgadiss' sharp ears caught her sobs. The princess was certainly in a life dilemma and the chimera man in disguise felt sorry for her once again; besides, she had been so kind with him since the beginning… Zelgadiss was usually oblivious about other people's problems, but this time he found himself wishing the best for that cute girl. Without thinking twice, he just spoke.
"Abandon your kingdom! Come with us!"
Even Miwan herself was surprised by Lulu's proposal; she just turned towards the female elf with a shock expression on her cute face. At this point, the chimera-man himself was surprised, too. Perhaps he had go too far with such a proposition and having Miwan next to them was too dangerous for her, mostly if he thought how many Mazoku were attacking them almost daily. But Miwan's hopeful face made him to forget it as she asked.
"What…?"
"You can come with us if you want to travel…" But his fight instincts warned him about something wrong in the lake and he just trailed off.
Suddenly a slimy thing, similar to very thick water, engulfed Miwan; the princess wasn't ready at all for such an attack and all she could do was scream in fear and hopeless. All of her moves had been quickly suppressed by that thick thing.
Zelgadiss knew better; he knew the thick thing should be a low rank Mazoku, a lesser demon; some scary creature, yes, but that can be fought with a high will, and that was something Zelgadiss had a lot; he wasn't going to waste his magical power on such a lame creature. The chimera bought his hand towards the fluffy white cloak on his back and muted some words; suddenly, his big bastard sword, appeared in his hand, ready and deadly as usual, and the cape notoriously less heavy than just some seconds before. The chimera man focused all his will on his sharp blade and attacked the slimy thing.
"Let Miwan go off!" he shouted.
And it worked; his sword cut Miwan's prison easily, by the corner of his eye, he could see how she dropped in the water again, free of the slimy thing.
But it was a mistake; Zelgadiss didn't think the slim water was "all" the lake, not only something that had imprisoned Miwan. Now, they both got caught by that thing again. What was it? Some kind of defensive spell lay on that holy spring? The chimera didn't know what to think, but he hardly could worried about it because he found all his chimerical power was useless against thick water, neither the will focused on his blade, which dropped on his hand.
Zelgadiss had to admit he was in a big trouble.
When Amelia came to the Purification Spring, the place that for some reason Lina and Gourry seemed to know where it was already, she found a terrifying spectacle. Certainly Zelgadiss was with Miwan, something that she knew could be possible that made her terribly upset… but the current situation wasn't very serious and she knew well enough what it meant. Amelia wasn't going to put her personal interest or frustration in the middle of an obvious' threat.
Zelgadiss and Miwan were trapped in the water, or rather, some thick fluid that seemed to be water. It had to be terribly strong because she knew how powerful Zelgadiss was and the chimera man seemed hopelessly trapped by that thing. The dark haired princess was wondering what that was when something towered from the water, reveling itself as Evia, the lesser Mazoku that had attacked them in the counter. Now, it was like a finger made of water, but it had dark holes as eyes, and an equally dark mouth that didn't move when it talked –as usually happened with Mazoku-; but in this case, instead taking a flesh form, this Mazoku had acquire water form, being able to control the water itself, which made him terrible in such a place. The holy object placed in the middle of the lake, didn't seem to have any effect on it.
Amelia didn't know what to do exactly, Lina warned her about the risk that meant to attack the water when Zelgadiss himself and the Femille's princess were engulfed by its body. However, she heard the chimera man in disguise cursed the Mazoku… Perhaps Zelgadiss hadn't thought it was a Mazoku, but hearing him to talk meant he hadn't run of power yet.
But, as payment, Evia started to attack them, knowing they couldn't do anything against the water-like creature. In spite of herself, Amelia bitted the dust under Evia's attack.
Zelgadiss watched the fight in anger; he had been wrong thinking the slummy thing was some kind of odd spell laid on the Purification Spring for protecting it, but it was a Mazoku, and now he blamed himself for such a mistake, because if he would know it was a Mazoku in the beginning, he wouldn't made such a stupid mistake. It was a mistake that had put Miwan, the rest of the group and himself in a real danger.
His chimerical eyes allowed him to see under the water without problem, even if that water was under the spell of a Mazoku; not like Miwan, who had her eyes closed because the water that had surrounded her. To tell the truth, Miwan barely could keep her breath for much longer, which meant she could die because she was suffocating by the water that Evia was. Still, he could catch the hopeless scream that merged from her throat.
The chimera man could remain awake like that for longer; sure, he could feel the oppression around him, but he hadn't gone this far just to die under such a pathetic lesser demon. The rest of the group –except Xelloss, who seemed to have disappeared again- could be immobilized because they were too afraid of hurting him or Miwan with any of their attacks. But it also meant Evia (or whatever was its name) was too busy attacking the others. He had time to think of a strategy.
But Miwan just couldn't remain like that any longer.
"Miwan…"
The chimera man didn't think of himself as a hero, but he had to do something.
Before Evia had the chance to do something, Zelgadiss body was engulfed by the effect of an offensive White Magic spell that he had learned from Amelia recently. It was a sacred place, and those spells had the particularity to be offensive only with mean powers, thus it would keep Miwan –and himself- safe, even if the spell ruined his disguise, as a side effect. Perhaps it was the effect of the water, but the spell flames shined as red fire instead the usual white flash. Evia, of course, caught something was very wrong to him and turned towards the chimera man without being able to do something. Lina, Amelia and the rest looked at him in wonder, even Miwan was surprised.
Finally, Evia' slimy body exploded and Zelgadiss could free himself along with Miwan; his fake woman dress was ruined, but he didn't care; being free to move again, his brown demon part acted and he jumped towards Miwan, whose slim body was about to splash into the water again; he caught her in mid air and jumped again till he landed smoothly on the grass covered back around the lake.
"You're safe, now" he said Miwan with a smile.
Miwan coughed, trying to erase the water inside her throat, and then looked at him with shocked eyes. Lulu wasn't a female elf anymore, but a man… A very unusual one. Miwan was just as shocked as amazed. That man –which was certainly a man-, was very strange; his face remained white because of the thick makeup that obviously covered it, but his skin was certainly dark blue, and it was made of stone. In fact, his entire body was covered in rough stones scattered randomly around his shape. Was he a male elf? Perhaps, because he had long ears, although she didn't know elves were actually made of stone.
Still, Miwan had been just saved by a man disguised as a woman, and he had been worried by her all this time. The person she had entrusted since the first time she had seen him, turned to be into something very different.
"This… this cannot be!" she mused, her voice still weak. "Mss… Lulu?" asked tentatively.
"My real name is Zelgadiss" the stone man answered, this time using his normal voice, "I don't want to deceive you anymore."
Now, it was clear this Zelgadiss guy had been in drag all this time in order to enter in the Femille kingdom, but the current events had ruined his disguise. Miwan just gaped as Zelgadiss left her on the ground softly.
"Wait here" the Lulu-man said, "I'll finish that Mazoku."
Miwan was just even more surprised.
At this point, everybody realized that they could fight Evia more easily, and the Mazoku was obviously damaged by the Megiddo Flare spell, and also confused because things weren't as that thing had thought. Besides that, Evia also had mistaken Lina for a man, but Zelgadiss wanted to solve things all by himself.
He wasn't the kind of man that didn't fight his problems.
"Wait, Lina!" Zelgadiss shouted, "This one is mine!"
Even Lina was surprised by his sudden demand. But she knew it was better to let Zelgadiss go on when he was in that state.
Zelgadiss wanted to eliminate that lesser Mazoku in all ways, better making suffering. It was going to pay the damaged that had caused on him and Miwan, as well the rest. He didn't want to be taking easy for such a creature. Therefore, the chimera jumped into the water with all the grace that his chimerical physical skills allowed him, and allowed him to be trapped by Evia, who obviously thought that trapping him was a good idea. It was what Zelgadiss had expected since the beginning, and he had been chanting a spell all this time. When Evia had wrapped him again with his thick water fake body, Zelgadiss made a gesture crossing his hands in front of his face, and later, he moved them towards Evia's main body.
Amelia knew the spell. She knew that if Zelgadiss had entered in battle so reckless, it was because he had a plan. The black haired princess didn't hear him chant the spell, but she recognized his hands' posture because she had done it many times.
"La-Tilt" she mused.
Like a mode prophecy, a very big white flash of flames engulfed the entire lake surface, blinding everybody for a moment. The stronger astral attack deleted any clue of Evia's existence. Anything the wrecked thing could have done was nothing right after being hit with "La-Tilt".
Zelgadiss stone body dropped into the dark lake water, this time free of Evia or any other threat. The chimera man turned towards the group in the bank with a triumphant smile on his stone lips, which was still covered in makeup.
"Well done, Mr. Zelgadiss!" Amelia shouted in joy, genuinely happy to see how things had turned out. Not only had Zelgadiss defeated Evia neatly, but she also had proved to be a good teacher because "Megiddo Flare" was a White Magic spell that she had taught him recently, and the result had been neat considering how clueless Zelgadiss was about White Magic.
Gourry, however, had a different view of things. The blond swordsman might not know about magic, but over the time he had learned a couple of things. "Yeah, well done… but I think you overdid a little, huh?"
The blond swordsman had reasons to think so because not only Evia had been defeated in a chorus of white flames, but because all the water in the lake had been… erased… and now only a poll of mud remained. It wasn't the Purification Spring anymore, but "the Purification mud". Zelgadiss, however, shrugged, and he just went to catch his own sword and daggers, which laid in the mud ground along with Miwan's mace and the cloak of his disguise dress, which had survived the "Megiddo Flare" because it was enchanted.
"Oh, my…!" Lina exclaimed, "This boy has always been so… zealous!" The redhead looked at Miwan, who was watching Zelgadiss-Lulu with a pensive expression, "Although I can't blame him… He had strong reasons for acting like that" Lina's mocking giggles sounded around the place.
Amelia caught Lina's words and looked at the Femille's princess, Lina and finally Zelgadiss, who was having a rough time moving around the mud. It was a rare view because usually the chimera man was very agile, but now he walked almost clumsily by the mud poll and still wet because of Evia's water body. To tell the truth, perhaps this was the first time that the chimera man walked around being half-naked (and not caring about that), even if it was because he was moving around the mud.
"Perhaps he likes that kind of baths…" Gourry suggested, although Amelia didn't know if the blonde Elmekian was being serious or just teasing.
But what surprised her the most was Zelgadiss didn't make any scene because everybody was seeing him almost naked; neither had he covered himself with the white cloth piece he had used to carry out all his pertinences. It was odd, but again, she noticed that Zelgadiss didn't feel truly ashamed of his body as part of himself, but ashamed of his body had been used as a Rezo's tool for accomplishing the Red Priest's plans. And now, the chimera just had used his skill to save some lives. There was an evident difference.
Besides that, Amelia found she couldn't keep apart her eyes from his frame; even when she had helped him to dress that disguise in the early morning; she hadn't caught so many details of his body shape. Again, she thought Zelgadiss looked like a marble walking statue with silvery hair, but he also… Amelia shook her head, trying to put away those thoughts that made her to blush quite furiously. She felt ashamed of thinking on him in such way, and better if nobody caught how red her face was.
Oblivious about the expectation he had awakened in Amelia, Zelgadiss caught his daggers, the white cloak of his disguise and his sword, when suddenly he stopped and turned back towards them.
Just in that moment, Lina felt a sharp dagger pointing to her neck.
"Mother!" Miwan exclaimed, turning towards Lina. The Femille's queen herself was threatening Lina's life with a dagger pointing at her throat. In fact, everybody else also was threatened with long mozzetas held by the female soldiers that came with their queen; they weren't many but the group had been so absent by the recent fight they hadn't notice the royal guard's presence.
"Shut up, Miwan!" her mother ordered and the Femille's princess had to accept it. The blond woman should be very angry, because she kept menacing Lina's life as she kept talking. "You have some nerve! Not only all you, filthy men, enter in our country disguised as a women, than you even destroy our Purification Spring!"
"Cht" Zelgadiss exclaimed; he wasn't being threatened, but his rabid action had got an unexpected consequence that now also meant a threat to the rest of the group.
"What are you talking about, missy?" Lina replied using her usual rude manners in spite talking with a royal. The rest of the group knew Lina enough for knowing she wanted to gain some time.
"I knew you and your group weren't what it seemed to be" the Femille's queen answered, "Since the guard caught my beloved daughter talking with that disgusting man –meaning Zelgadiss-, I ordered a patrol to watch your group closely because I smelled there was something wrong in your group. One of them even talked with you and informed me you were interested in the Purification Spring, our most holy object. And all you pretended so you could destroy it!"
Lina remembered the weird guard chief that had offered a red rose to Gourry, as some kind of twisted gif to "such beautiful blonde foreign woman". At first, Lina had laughed at her bodyguard's situation because she had found that guard chief was too masculine and perhaps was interested in Gourry, which made the scenario even more hilarious; but later he had to admit that guy –or chick- had provided to be very useful telling them a full explication of the Purification Spring.
---But in the end, that guard chief had turned into a spy and now they were in trouble.
Amelia didn't know this, but she felt the urge to clarify the situation and she turned towards the Femille's queen. She knew how to address to a royal.
"That's not true!" the dark haired princess shouted in polite manner, "We didn't destroy it on purpose!"
"Shut up, you commoner!" Miwan's mother ordered to Amelia, obviously without knowing who was addressing to her. "Every of those deeds are just unforgettable! You shall be executed!"
Zelgadiss watched the scene from the mud poll and still naked. He wasn't in a real threat, in fact, he could defeat every of those guards without using his sword or his magic at all… but such actions would put the rest of them in danger. If at least he could… Then, he noticed the shadows that everybody projected on the grassy ground, the usual long shadows or a summer's afternoon. He clenched one of his daggers in his fist, waiting for the right chance.
"Oigh! What nasty queen!" Martina exclaimed, obviously talking like she was used to do with everybody, which included other royalties, besides Amelia. "She just cannot understand what a Mazoku can do!"
Miwan's mother was amazed at those words, "A Mazoku? And what are those manners of addressing to a queen, commoner!?"
"I am not a commoner!" Martina exclaimed, raising on her legs, but still trembling and soaked by the strong water impact that Evia had done on her. "I am her highness Martina Xoana Mel Navratilova, the princess of the Xoana kingdom!"
Perhaps it wasn't a good idea Martina announced her real status like that, but the Femille's queen was shocked by Martina's sudden announcement and her dagger dropped from Lina's threat. It was just the move that Zelgadiss was waiting for.
"Lina, get off!" The chimera shouted and the red head sorceress obeyed, knowing that Zelgadiss meant to do something. And it was; as Lina pulled away from the Femille's queen, Zelgadiss throw his dagger towards the queen's shadow on the ground as Zelgadiss shouted again, "Shadow snap!"
The Femille's queen didn't know what happened, but suddenly, she found a dagger had buried into her shadow and she just couldn't move.
"Zelgadiss!" Miwan shouted, fearing he would do something bad to her mother, "What are you…?"
The chimera just didn't listen to any of them. He just jumped from the mud poll and rushed towards the queen, his sword in his hand, and pointed at her with his blade almost lazily. Everything was so fast and calculated that the guards obviously weren't used to that kind of attack because they barely could react when they found their queen had been trapped like that. Meanwhile, Gourry reacted quickly and just take off the mozzeta of the female guard that was pointing at him, and Amelia did the same; they were all far more used to real fights that any of those royal corps that doing it was even easy. Only the guard that threatened Martina remained in her post, but she obviously didn't dare to make any move since her direct prisoner claimed to be a princess and her own queen was being menaced. That royal guard member just knew better.
"What is this!? Magic!?" the Femille's queen exclaimed as she watched the dagger that kept her hold. Then, she raised the eyes and looked at the weird man that was in front of her, almost naked and holding a blade in one hand along with two daggers and a white piece of cloth in the other hand. He wasn't threatening her throat with his blade, but she knew he could use it in any moment and his mere presence was disturbing to her.
"You… you're a chimera!" The Femile's queen exclaimed as she was realizing of that, "One of those filthy men that accept to be turned into monsters to be warriors."
"Don't overact, Zel!" Lina warned.
"That's not your business, your highness." Zelgadiss answered, ignoring Lina. "But better if you listen what had happened here and let us go."
"Yes, mother, please!" Miwan pledge, placing herself next to Zelgadiss. "He saved my life!"
"What…?"
The rest of the group watched the scene in amazement; perhaps Miwan could solve the situation with Zelgadiss' help.
"A Mazoku contaminated the Purification Spring and made me its prisoner!" Miwan rushed to answer, choosing the right words to catch her mother's interest. "And Zelgadiss…" she glanced at him, "Saved me using his magic power! That's why the Purification Spring was destroyed! It was a Mazoku's fault not theirs!"
The Femille's queen was obviously overwhelmed by the events that her daughter had summarized. She hadn't seen any of that, just a bunch of men that were running around the place and had destroyed the holiest object in her small kingdom, the source of its power. But Miwan claimed it was a Mazoku's fault. It made sense a Mazoku would want to take over that place.
"What the princess Miwan says is true!" Martina added from her place, "It was a cursed Mazoku who was killed off before you saw him. But you just refuse to see the truth because you refuse to see how nice men can be!"
Lina heard her and sighed. She was still doubting if Martina' speech was being useful or not.
"Oh, c'mon, Martina!" the redhead sighed.
The Femille's queen was more interested in other kind of things, though.
"And you are… Xoana's princess?" her voice sounded as surprised as wary.
Martina nodded and said, "Of course, and I'm going to demonstrate it now showing you the royal crest!" And she started to search her Zomersther's crest in her regular clothes, "Oigh, I cannot find it!"
Miwan, however, looked at the rest of the girls gathered there. Her mother had said that Zelgadiss was a chimera, a kind of artificial warrior, which explained his odd features better than saying he was an elf; but since that curly haired girl was another princess like her, who were the rest?
"Then… who are you? And why have you been here?" Miwan asked, "Please, tell us. I don't want my mother to condemn you."
"Miwan…" her mother exclaimed.
"Ok, ok… perhaps it's time to put things clear already." Lina announced, trying to stand out in the middle of all these royalties.
"Please, your highness. We never wanted to cause havoc in your kingdom. It was totally an accident." Amelia explained, being faster that Lina's coming cocky self-introduction. "Neither the princess Martina nor me, wanted such thing to happened."
Miwan and her mother exchanged looks; obviously confused by the events, and later looked carefully at that girl with short black hair and blue eyes dressed with a Lincoln green outfit that also was soaked.
"You… your face…I find it familiar. Are you also a royalty?" the Femille's queen asked in awe as a light suspicious began to merge on her mind.
Amelia nodded, but her answer was vague. "We are related with royalties. And we all fight Mazoku. She's really Xoana's princess," Amelia summarized pointing at Martina, who still searching for Zomelsther's crest, "And we… we're closer to Seyruun's royalty."
Obviously Amelia didn't want to demonstrate her real identity. Even if her authority was higher than any other royalty there, her presence would create a diplomatic problem hard to explain, so her answer was quite accurate. Zelgadiss knew this and allowed Amelia to handle the situation, but Lina complained behind her muttering something about her lack of prominence.
"Seyruun's… royalty…" Miwan exclaimed as she raised her hands towards her mouth and her mother dropped her head defeated.
"I see now… Even if everything that has happened is a direct attack to Femille's holy laws, I can see the importance of you being here. Also the fact this chimera man has saved my beloved daughter."
Lina smiled with pride and Amelia placed next to her, ready for taking actions.
"I cannot put Femille into a diplomatic fight with Xoana or any other kingdom. The power of my kingdom resides on this fountain, and now it's destroyed. So I cannot help but let you go. My army cannot fight any other kingdom, even less a chimera warrior."
"Mother!" Miwan exclaimed.
Zelgadiss watched the Femille's queen being totally defeated. "So I can let you go then?" he asked.
"Yes. You're free. You have my word."
"Ok" and he dropped his blade and pulled out the dagger from the grass ground under the queen's feet. As he did so, her body trembled and almost collapsed on her knees, but Miwan was faster and caught her in time.
"I'm at your mercy." The blonde woman announced.
"Wooah, Lina! You know how to push the royalties." Gourry exclaimed, feeling far more relaxed, even if he knew that this time had been Zelgadiss and Martina, with a little help from Amelia, who had saved the situation in some twisted way.
"That's the fabulous Lina Inverse!" the redhead exclaimed with pride.
Amelia sighed, but Martina felt offended.
"What are you saying, Lina? It was been Xoana's influence that has saved every of you!" exclaimed the curly haired princess, shaking a fist.
"Yeah, well, whatever."
The Femille's queen sat on the grass, watching them, yet overwhelmed by the events; that group of foreign people had changed the politics in her country in just some hours, and she started to fear the redhead girl's truth identity, mostly when she was called "Lina Inverse". Could she be the so-called "Dragon Spookier" could have visited her kingdom with some royalties and changed everything? Incredible stories surrounded Lina Inverse and she also had learned about them.
"Mother… there is something else I want to tell you" Miwan said to her in quiet voice, kneeling next to her. "Now, since this is a royal cohort and their guards, I think I can ask you it."
"Are you going to tell that to your mother, Miwan?" Zelgadiss asked with his usual coldness and Miwan nodded. "Well done." He added with a smile.
"Tell her what, Zel?" Lina asked, raising an eyebrow. "Is there something else we have to know or what?"
Zelgadiss ignored Lina's question and watched closely how Miwan tried to talk with her mother about a certain issue.
"Mother… perhaps this isn't the best time to tell you this, but you know already I do not wish to become a priestess or a shrine maiden…" The golden eye girl spoke softly to her mother, "Now, the Purification Spring has been destroyed by that Mazoku and…"
"Evia was her name." Lina added, as she wanted to make more proof of what had happened.
"And I always wanted to travel around the world, knowing more places than just these mountains and forests."
"Are you trying to say you want to leave?" The queen asked in low voice.
Miwan nodded, "Yes. In fact, Zelgadiss offered me to go with them."
The Femille's queen was surprised.
The royal guards were surprised.
Lina's group also was surprised.
In fact… everybody was really surprised. It could have been called "general shocking surprise".
"What did she just say!?" Lina exclaimed.
"Mr. Zelgadiss, did you offered princess Miwan to come with us!?" Amelia sounded as surprised as the rest, but also lightly disappointed.
"Yes, I did." The chimera answered in a cold voice, not giving further explications.
Even Gourry was looking at him surprised, and making Gourry to be surprised was something hard to do.
"Is there any reason to make my daughter come with you, chimera warrior?" The Femille's queen asked to Zelgadiss trying to sound authoritarian.
"Your daughter… needs to learn about the world if she has to become the next Femille's queen" Zelgadiss explained to her, "And many of us are related with Xoana or Seyruun's royalties, as my travel companion here said." He added glancing at Amelia. "It would be a good experience for your daughter."
Amelia's jaw dropped; she just couldn't believe what Zelgadiss had thought. He, obviously, wasn't thinking on Femille's future safety for telling the queen those things; he had hidden reasons; certain hidden reasons that Amelia found really awkward.
"But Mr. Zelgadiss…" she began, but Lina put a hand on her shoulder.
"Don't try to stop him now, Amelia. He got hooked to Miwan and now he only wants to spend time with her" the redhead explained. "I don't like the idea of her traveling with us… but well, Zel never has been so interested in somebody." Then, Lina began to giggle.
Amelia understood what Lina said but she wished the redhead sounded more serious instead finding the chimera man's behavior so funny; Zelgadiss was fond of Miwan because he… liked her. It was hard to believe and Amelia, once again, felt disappointed with it.
As Lina and Amelia talked about the issue, Miwan kept trying to convince her mother over the convenience of her taking a trip with those "important" travelers.
"I can see why it's important for you, Miwan." The Femille's queen had lost her previous cockiness, and now she sounded truly defeated. "But can we trust them?"
"Mr. Zelgadiss… the chimera man… saved me, mother" Miwan answered, "I already told you that."
"Here is it!" Martina exclaimed finally, obviously absent of the current events. "Here is the Zomelsthers' crest! The royal crest of Xoana's crown!"
Both Femille's royalties, in fact everybody, looked at Martina, who hold the ugly crest in front of everybody as mute evidence of her royal origin; her face, though, was totally proud.
"Is that… Xoana's crest?" Miwan asked, doubtful.
Zelgadiss sighed, but the Femille's queen was faster in answering.
"Yes, it's. I can recognize Xoana's crest anywhere."
Martina's proud laughs were obviously everywhere. Again, she felt like she was ruling a nation.
"Ok, Zel… I think it's time you cover yourself a little, don't you think?" Lina told him.
"Why don't you tell that to Gourry, too?" the chimera man answered.
Lina crossed her arms under her small chest, trying to look resolute.
"It's enough, Zel!" she exclaimed, "We just cannot allow that little princess to come with us! It would delay us and it is definitively dangerous for her!"
The group was back in Femille's royal palace, dressing in their usual clothes, which helped to reveal a little further about their real identities. The queen had spared their lives after learning they were a group of Xoana and Seyruun royalties that had saved her daughter from certain Mazoku called Evia, even if in the process, the Purification Spring was destroyed in the process.
---Well, it was destroyed, but not the moonlit placed in the center, which meant that Femille had a chance yet, even if she had affirmed the "Purification Spring" was the source of her kingdom's power. That people just didn't know the truth and the Femille's queen hadn't reasons to give any further explication.
Fortunately, the monolith was safe now, and her daughter also was safe. But now the problem was the proposal that Miwan had requested her.
Since the day that Miwan learned she had to become a shrine maiden, she always had done the possible to avoid it, but now she also had told her mother that her real wish was to travel around the world like those royalties did, and learning new things. At first, Miwan's mother had refused that idea, but after later events, she had started to change her mind.
Yeah, the group was made by a collection of priests, sorcerers and at least two mercenaries, one of them a chimera. And yes, those mercenaries were men, but she knew that chimeras were quite safer than regular men for a woman. That, and counting with the fact that one of those royalties was the Princess Martina herself, from Xoana, a little kingdom that belonged to the Coast Confederated States; it also was a great opportunity for setting up a nice relationship between two countries. That, and the fact that Seyruun was also involved in it.
The Femille's queen wasn't happy with the fact that Xoana and Seyruun were poking their noises in the politics of her little kingdom, but it was better to be in good terms with those two nations than entering into a diplomatic affair.
---The only thing that she had to make clear was her daughter wouldn't blah about certain a monolith.
On the other hand, if Miwan made a trip with that people and learned a couple of things about the outside world, then perhaps she could be convinced about how good it was living in Femille, being a part of wars, conflicts and basically the abusive treatment that many women suffered in other countries. Miwan will just learn the hard way to become into Femille' shrine maiden, no matter what.
As a result, Miwan got her mother's permission to travel with that eccentric group of royalties as long as she didn't talk about their real identities or the source of power in Femille. Miwan, of course, received the news in joy and become really happy afterwards; she changed her regular fine clothes into something more common and handy, such like a pair of dark green hoses and a tunic to mid length in light grey color, along with a short enchanted cape where she wore her belongs, and a pair of shot leather boots. Her cameo crest of her royal family will remain hidden in the cape, along the valuable possessions and her money.
Miwan, of course, was very excited, even with the change of her regular clothes.
But besides that, there were people that just weren't too happy with the idea of Miwan traveling with the "royalties group". And one of them happened to be Lina Inverse.
"…I agree with Mss Lina, Mr. Zelgadiss." Amelia was the other one in disappointed, of course. "We're involved into something very dangerous, so we just cannot put a princess into such danger. It even could create a diplomatic problem."
"And she doesn't know anything about magic, fighting or anything else" Lina added. "You had to save her in the fight against Evia because she couldn't do anything."
"Lina… I'm not asking your permission to make other people to join us!" Zelgadiss answered in sharp tone.
Lina recognized Zelgadiss' voice tone. It was quiet but also very sharp; she knew when the chimera man talked in that tone, he was being very serious and it was better not teasing him. However, the redhead wasn't about to give up her common sense just because Zelgadiss wasn't being logical. Or rather, he was thinking only with certain part of himself.
"It isn't a matter of permissions, Zel…"Lina began, "It's a matter of safety! She doesn't seem how to fight and we're involved in something dangerous. We just can't put her in such risk!"
Zelgadiss glanced at Amelia, who was unusually sided with Lina in that matter, although he understand better the Seyruun's princess reasons to think so than Lina's. Indeed, it was the reason because he was facing up to Lina.
"Oh, really?" he asked, almost in mocking tone. "As far I remember, none of us asked for Martina's company and now, she's traveling with us. And she doesn't know anything really useful about magic."
"Oh, my! How rude!" Martina exclaimed since the armchair where she was sit. "I'm here, rude chimera man! Can't you be polite when you talk about somebody that is in front of you?"
Martina had reasons to be angry, but Zelgadiss just ignored her. He had learned long ago to ignore the insults towards his persona.
"C'mon, Zel!" Lina replied, "The only reason because Martina is traveling with us is because she comes with Xelloss!"
Amelia glanced at her "co-worker" and later to Lina, "Well, I don't mind she comes with us" the dark haired princess said with an awkward smile.
"And that makes me wonder why that wrecked priest is with us, anyway." Zelgadiss added with a grunt, meaning Xelloss.
The mocking priest didn't lose his usual smile and just answered, "Well, I'm searching for the Claire Bible like you are. You're useful for me and I'm useful for you. It's very easy."
Lina sighed, knowing what Zelgadiss wanted to say, although in certain way she agreed with him about Xelloss. She knew he didn't like at all to be bossed around, so he just would keep arguing with her about what he wanted to do and what Lina didn't want to. Gourry, fortunately, wasn't like that because the blonde mercenary was use to accept Lina's decisions without questioning; but Zelgadiss wasn't anything like that. No wonder why Amelia always had a small chat with him about what to do before acting; she couldn't boss him, either.
The problem was Zelgadiss' sudden decision about getting Miwan with them was very obvious.
"You know, Zel?" she asked, almost teasing. "This is the first time I see you acting like a man and it's kind of fun… But this is just too much!"
There was a brief flash of red in Zelgadiss' face, but he overcame that feeling and just sentenced what he wanted since the beginning.
"Miwan will come with us. If she can't fight or do anything else, I'll take care of her. I don't care about what you think, but that's her desire and I want to accomplish it."
"Ouffff!" Lina exclaimed, massaging her templates. "Ok, ok! Go on! Even if it's just because for the sake of seeing you with a girl you like, then go ahead. But stop giving bizarre reasons to convince us."
"I'm not going to give you that pleasure, Lina. And don't worry; I'll take care of Miwan."
Amelia listened them with wide eyes, realizing that Zelgadiss' interest in the Femille's princess wasn't something casual, but more intense. It was almost scary to see the chimera man acting like a man that took a fancy in a cute girl.
But Zelgadiss also was right: none of them had asked permission to the rest to join the group. So why he had to ask the others if they wanted Miwan come along with them? Amelia had to admit she just couldn't be against Zelgadiss' decision, in spite that it bothered her till the end.
Well, even if Miwan joined the group, it didn't mean that she couldn't be Zelgadiss' friend.
"…In such case, we'll tell Princess Miwan about our real identities when she comes with us" The Seyruun's princess announced.
To be continued on chapter-4 "The Two Princesses".
