Hello everyone! Insert the usual disclaimer here- I don't own anything, I'm just a fan writing some fiction! Please enjoy!
4-Take It or Leave It
"The Demon King of the North? You didn't have to come all this way to tell me- I already knew that's what was going on!" Mrs. Inverse was a little indignant of her daughter's explanation. "What was the point in coming here?"
"The point in coming here was to find Luna!" Lina retorted. "At least- that was my friends' plan."
"So you were here against your will? That can't be healthy." It seemed pretty clear that Mrs. Inverse knew all about the relationship between her daughters.
"Well, we thought that Miss Luna might listen to what Miss Lina says more than she'd listen to us." Amelia defended.
There was a pause, and suddenly Mrs. Inverse began to laugh. "Luna, listen to Lina? You must be joking! Those two girls have been at each other's throats since I can remember!"
"Wh-what?" Amelia stammered, watching the woman laughing almost hysterically. "B-but… they're sisters…"
"I tried to tell you guys! But, no. You wouldn't listen. Now we had to come all this way for nothing!" Lina growled, crossing her arms with a pout.
"Not for nothing." Gourry pointed out. "We did help out a couple of kids who needed a ride."
"Oh yeah; them." Zelgadis glowered. He'd already expressed his distaste for Enrique and Azarel in no uncertain terms, and, by this point, it was getting a little annoying.
"Give it a rest, will you?" Lina demanded. "What's your deal with them? They're just a couple of kids!"
"They were not just a couple of kids! They appeared out of nowhere, running from some unidentified danger… did you even see or hear any evidence of a trailing bandit group?"
Lina had to admit, she hadn't, though she didn't actually want to concede to Zelgadis. "We left them in the dust. Of course we wouldn't see or hear them."
"Besides, they were all alone. What reason would they have to lie to us?" Gourry asked.
"Don't worry so much about him. It's a psychological thing." Amelia spoke, waving her hand dismissively. "Zelgadis hates children."
The room fell silent for a moment. Lina's mouth turned up at the corners as she waited for some sort of pun; some sort of punch line. Amelia had said it too seriously; too matter-of-factly. Something wasn't right.
When, after a few more awkward moments had passed, they realized that Amelia had no intention of saying anything else, Zelgadis finally spoke up in his own defence.
"I do not-"
"Don't lie." Amelia retorted.
"I'm not lying! That was uncalled for!" Zelgadis was on his feet in an instant, approaching Amelia, who was sitting on the opposite side of the room. She rose from her chair as well, turning her back on the chimera in disdain.
"This is not the time or place for this, Zelgadis."
"Don't lecture me- you're the one who started it!"
"I just made an offhand comment! You were the one who took offense to it!"
"That was not offhand; anyone would take offense to that." Zelgadis defended. "You're not usually the type to go around slandering your friends like that!"
"It's not slander if it's true." Amelia huffed.
"But it's not!"
Lina, Gourry, and Mrs. Inverse just stared at the scene in mute horror. Lina had noticed that Amelia had been taking jabs at Zelgadis recently, though she'd assumed that it was just playful banter. Zelgadis really seemed to be hurt by what Amelia had said, though, but he was only digging himself in deeper by yelling like that.
"Just because I think a couple of kids are suspicious," Zelgadis continued. "doesn't mean that I hate them. Yes, they're kids, and yes, they seem suspicious to me. But they don't seem suspicious to me because they're children! Why would you say something like that?!"
"And why do you suddenly care about what I say?" Amelia crossed her arms defiantly. "You never do when we're alone. Is it because our friends are here and you have to save face?"
"Th-that's not…" Zelgadis seemed to be running out of things to say. If this had been a fight with magic or with swords, he had the skills to have finished it in a heartbeat. But Amelia knew better than anyone that he was a man of few words, and she'd found a way to best him and render him defenceless, at least in a figurative sense.
Lina shuddered. Maybe she shouldn't have been worried about Amelia getting harassed- it was Zelgadis that she might have to step in and defend instead.
Before anyone could say anything else, the sorceress had gotten up and placed herself in-between Zelgadis and Amelia.
"Alright, you two- that's enough. I'm glad that you're trying to work out your problems and everything, but this is my parents' house and I'm a little scared that you're going to break something. We were just talking about those two kids we met yesterday, alright?"
Zelgadis sighed. "I'm sorry. I just… I remember all the past times that we've helped out some mysterious little kid, and they generally haven't ended well. That's the only thing that makes me suspicious."
"I understand, but neither of those kids was Hellmaster, or anything." Lina replied with a sigh.
"You remember what Phibrizzo looked like. One of them could have been him."
"If Phibrizzo were alive, which he's not." Lina quickly added. "I've killed him twice. I would know. But… you make a good point, Zel."
Zelgadis sighed and placed a hand on Amelia's shoulder. She didn't flinch, but she didn't look especially happy either. "Amelia, I'm sorry. It's just a matter of trust, okay? When your trust has been betrayed by something, and you've been hurt by it, it's difficult be open to similar situations. You should know that. And it isn't anyone's fault, but there's no helping the fact th-"
"Um, actually, I think we could say that it's Phibrizzo's fault." Lina interrupted. Zelgadis and Amelia turned and stared at her blankly for a moment before she caught on. "Or… were you… talking about something else?" The sorceress put her hands up in submission. "Sorry, I'll just… go sit down now…"
"Phibrizzo's fault. That sounds about right to me. Sometimes it's nice to at least put the blame on someone. Right, Amelia?"
The princess had sat down in her chair again, and was purposefully avoiding eye contact with anyone. Lina felt a surge of anger, more severe than the situation really called for, but she was used to emotional ups and downs by this point. Zelgadis, of all people, had just apologised! It was a nice apology too- and Amelia refused to accept it? The sorceress felt like beating someone up… not one of her friends though, of course. Maybe just a random bystander of little consequence. That would be nice.
Suddenly, as though in answer to Lina's wishes, the sound of a crash followed by a loud gasp came from the store below.
"Oh no! That's the peaches! I knew that jar display looked awfully precarious!" Mrs. Inverse cringed, jumping up to go investigate the cause of the crash.
"Don't worry, Mom- I've got it." Lina stepped in before her mother could protest. "I'll teach that customer to be more careful in my family's store."
Gourry rose to his feet and began to follow her, but Mrs. Inverse placed grabbed his arm and pulled him back. "Let her have this one, Gourry. You ought to know that beating up people helps her to blow off steam. She needs to get rid of some stress."
Gourry frowned, but nodded, figuring that there shouldn't be much danger in it. "But… I feel kind of bad for that customer…"
Lina stormed down the stairs, looking around intently for the source of the crash. She finally noticed an empty space about three rows down where a display of jars had been situated. Rushing to the aisle, she saw all the jars scattered about on the floor and a small man in a dark cloak fumbling about through the jars as though searching for something… probably that pair of spectacles that was sitting just in front of him, though it was doubtful that he could see them, if that was the case.
The sorceress stomped over and grabbed the glasses in one hand and the man's arm in the other. She pulled him to his feet and glared directly into the horrified expression in his eyes. He didn't seem to be able to see her very well, but he could feel the anger in her gaze even if he couldn't see it.
"What do you think you're doing?!" Lina demanded impatiently. "Are you blind, or just a total klutz?"
"Y-yes..." the man whimpered.
Lina didn't move, and raised an eyebrow suspiciously. "What in the world would possess you to knock over an intricate display like that? Those jars were very tightly packed- even a blind klutz would need special skill to do something like this."
"M-my robe got stuck on the corner of the aisle… I don't like to wear it, but it's so cold outside, and…" The man's voice trailed off. "Will you give me back my glasses, or…?"
"No, not until you agree to pick up all of these jars. You can't just walk into the Inverse family's store and expect to not have repercussions if you accidentally-"
"Inverse?" the man interrupted, blinking confusedly. "Y-you don't mean… like… Lina Inverse, do you?"
It was Lina's turn to stop and stare. She gently released her grip on his wrist, looking over at him with scepticism. "…how do you know my name? Who are you?"
The response took a moment to sink in. "Y-your name…" the man gasped. "Y-you… you're Lina Inverse?!"
Azarel paced back and forth with a frustrated expression, while Enrique watched from the front seat of a small wagon, tossing the reins back and forth in his hands impatiently.
"I just can't place it..." Azarel murmured fitfully. "I know I forgot something, but I can't figure out what."
"C'mon, Az- you never forget anything. You're the smartest person I know- which maybe isn't saying much, 'cause you're, like, the only person I actually know, but all the same, you're just so smart." Enrique spoke. "Let's go ahead and leave. There's nothing to worry about."
Azarel smiled pleasantly. "Enrique, hon, you're such a sweetheart, but I just can't leave until I figure this out. It's going to eat me alive if I don't."
"But, Az, it's going to be dark soon, and-"
"Enrique." The sweet smile on Azarel's face was gone, and in its place was an expression that shut the boy's mouth. He was like a well-trained dog that obeyed its master's commands before they were even spoken.
"I'm getting worried. I hope I haven't left something important..."
"Maybe it's your glasses?" Enrique suggested jokingly.
"Hah, nice try little brother, but those are on my face." Azarel waved a finger chidingly. "Think, think."
"Well... maybe... you left your flower barrette somewhere?"
"My-?!" Azarel seemed to believe it for a moment, quickly grasping the small pink clip that held together a braid of thick, dark hair, and then released it with a relieved sigh.
"That's in my hair, you moron. I'm being serious."
"Well, have you looked at all the books you carry with you? Those are really the only other possessions that we have."
"Where might I have left the books, though?" Azarel began digging through Enrique's backpack, taking all the books out and placing them back inside one by one.
"What about that thick one? The one with the blue cover that doesn't have many pictures?" Enrique pointed out.
"You mean the post-Kōma War history?" Azarel gasped. "You're right! It isn't here! Th-that's my most important book!"
"Maybe you left it on the wagon from earlier." Enrique quickly replied, jumping to his feet. "We could go search-"
"No! I'm sure that I didn't! We double-checked, remember?"
"Well, where'd it go? I've had the backpack this whole time." Enrique suddenly seemed to realize what that implied, and began waving his hands nervously. "B-but it's not my fault! There's no reason for me to-"
"I know, I know. You didn't do anything with it."
"But, then… what might have happened to it?!"
"I don't… I can't… I just…"
"HEY! Enrique! Azarel!"
Upon hearing the voice, Enrique scrambled to his feet while Azarel let out a relieved sigh.
It took him long enough…
"Oh, thank goodness I found you guys!" Zara exclaimed, almost completely out of breath. "I was so afraid you'd left already!"
"We were about to leave, but Azarel thought that we'd forgotten something." Enrique replied, jumping down onto the ground to meet Zara.
"You did! Here!" Zara handed off the large book to Enrique, who handed it back up to Azarel. "I found it in my backpack. It must have gotten put there accidentally- I don't know how, but I'm glad I caught up to you. Azarel mentioned how important this book is to you, and…"
"Yes, it is!" Azarel hopped down out of the wagon to join the two boys. "Thank you so much Zara- we would have been so worried otherwise."
"Of course, of course!" Zara took a step back and glanced around awkwardly. "Well… I… I guess I'd better let you two leave. Just remember to write me once you get where you're going, okay?"
"Zara, wait!"
The boy had turned to leave, but Azarel's voice stopped him.
"D-do you… want to come with us?"
Zara blinked in disbelief. "Wha…?"
"Come with us." Azarel extended a hand to the boy, and he stared at it, not sure whether to take it or not.
"Az, what are you doing?" Enrique hissed in his sibling's ear, but Azarel ignored him.
"Come with you?" Zara repeated. "Like, as in, right now? I… don't understand…"
"Listen…" Azarel took a deep breath and then began. "…Enrique and I aren't really going to meet a distant relative. We're going because we're searching for a mystical item that we need for an important quest. I wanted to know if you would come with us and help us."
"A… an important quest?" Zara asked, still a bit confused.
Azarel moved closer and lowered the volume of the conversation, seeing that Zara needed an explanation. "You know the story of the great sage Lei Magnus, right?" the child spoke in a whisper.
"Oh! He's the sorcerer who invented the Dragon Slave, right? He was sealed in ice as the Demon King of the North!" Zara clapped his hands excitedly.
"That's the one!" Azarel enthused. "He's the one we're after. Aqualord Ragradia's barrier is nearly impossible to break, but my research has shown that there's a mythical item that is able to penetrate it…"
Zara wasn't sure how exactly to reply. "B-but… why would you want to break the barrier…?"
"To talk to the great sage, of course! Don't you see? If we set Lei Magnus free, he can share all of his wisdom with us! We'll be the smartest sorcerers in all of the world! We'd have knowledge that no other intellectuals of our age have had access to… doesn't that sound amazing?"
Zara had to admit, it did.
"…but… is it really okay for me to just leave like this?"
"It's adventure, Zara! Excitement! You're old enough and smart enough to go off and have an adventure with friends… don't you think so?"
The boy wrung his hands, not sure where to look. "Lina and Gourry wouldn't let me go off on my own. But I'm more mature than they think I am, I just know it. I want to go… but… I can't just leave. I need to tell them somehow… they probably won't let me…"
"Just write them a letter!" Azarel replied. "We can make sure that someone delivers it after we leave. That way they'll know where you are and won't worry about you- and they can't object."
"Isn't that… cheating?"
Azarel winked.
"This is real life. You can't cheat it real life."
Zara spent a few minutes writing out his message in the notebook that he kept in his backpack. When he was satisfied with it, he got up to deliver it, but Azarel stepped in.
"I'll take it for you! The Inverse family is pretty famous here in Zephiel City- someone will know how to get it there!"
"H-how did you kno-" Before Zara could even ask the question, Azarel had already turned a corner heading toward the market. "…oooookay, then."
"Don't worry so much." Enrique spoke up. "I'm sure that Azarel's a really good person, even if it's not apparent sometimes… or… uh… most of the time… really all the time, but there's good deep down. I know it. Deeeep, deep down-"
"I get it, I get it." Zara giggled.
"S-sorry… I talk too much… Azarel is constantly getting mad at me for rambling on, but I can't really help it sometimes when I have a lot to say, and I have too many words to put together and not enough time to say them all… uh…"
"I like the way you talk! It's fun to listen to!" Zara smiled brightly.
"R-really?" Enrique perked up, almost in utter disbelief. "S-so it's okay with you if I talk a lot? 'Cause Azarel almost never lets me talk, and sometimes it gets a little lonely, but there's no one else who ever even listens to me at all, so I don't really get the chance to tell anyone what I'm thinking…"
"Sure! I'd love to hear what you have to say!"
Azarel leaned against the wall just around the corner, reading over the letter with a frown of disdain.
"Hmm… yes… just a tad bit too much information for my taste. Sorry, Zara."
A spark started out from the child's fingertips and spread out over the letter until the entire piece of paper had been consumed. The ashes fell to Azarel's feet, landing gently in the snow.
"Far too much information, really." Azarel paused and thought about the situation for a moment, counting out on two fingers.
"Enrique… Zara… yep, that seems about right. Two down, only one to go."
The child swivelled around and skipped pleasantly back to the wagon.
"…and then it'll be your turn to grovel at my feet, Lord Pathosmaster…"
(A/N: How much trouble could two little kids cause…? Aha… ha… haha… I guess this is a running theme in my fanfictions. That may be a bad thing. Huh…)