Dinner went without incident, although both Gravos and Jillas were sulky, and Filia was quietly seething with anger. Both Lina and Gourry found the whole thing hilarious. Amelia was trying very hard not to find it funny, and Zelgadis simply ignored everyone.
Once the dishes were cleared and everything was cleaned up, Filia was instantly serious once more. "What I don't understand is this, Lina-san," she said bluntly. "Why is this all happening now, and all at once?"
Lina slapped Gourry's hands away from her after-dinner cookies with a growl, then turned to Filia, speaking between mouthfuls. "That is the question, isn't it?" she agreed. "It's been a couple of years at least since the Mazoku have harassed us seriously. I suppose this is overdue."
"So you think that everything, the sword, the necklace, all of that, is part of some plot from the Mazoku?" Zelgadis wondered, resting his chin on his hands.
Lina licked the crumbs away from her lips shamelessly. "I'm not sure," she admitted, "but it does seem somewhat fishy, doesn't it?"
Amelia slammed her fists on her table. "We have to get down to the bottom of this!" she declared, surprising no one. "The Mazoku shouldn't be allowed to manipulate us like this!"
"That's what we're DOING, Amelia," Lina muttered, giving her an annoyed look.
Amelia nodded, ignoring Lina. "If you ask me, it sounds like they NEED us," she went on, her fists in the air. "And thus are using us, innocent allies of Justice!"
Lina opened her mouth to say something caustic, but then stopped, blinking in surprise. "You know, you may have a point."
Everyone looked at her in surprise, all except Amelia, who was nodding smugly. "How do you figure?" Zelgadis asked.
"Well, think about it," Lina said, her eyes out of focus, deep in thought. "If this all IS a plot, they certainly went out of their way to put all of the pieces together for us to find. Why would they bother if they could do it themselves?"
"For the free meals?" Gourry piped in suddenly.
"That's hardly enough reason to harass us intricately!" Lina snapped.
Filia looked calmly at Lina, despite the fact that her eyes were blazing. "So, then, you're going to destroy it?"
Lina frowned, looking right at the spot where Gourry had hidden it. "We probably should, shouldn't we?" she agreed.
Amelia, who was still standing, looked thoughtful. "What if there was a way to destroy the Mazoku part, then place the Light part back into the sword?"
"Our lives are never that easy," Zelgadis answered darkly.
Everyone gave him uncomfortable looks, which he decided to ignore.
"In any case, it's getting late," Filia broke in, shattering the gloomy silence that Zelgadis had cast. "Anything we do, we can do in the morning."
Lina refused to admit it, but she was definitely in agreeance with Filia. She was tired, sore, and desperately in need of a soft bed to sleep on. She stood up, stretched, and smiled at Gourry. "Shall we take our usual room?" she asked casually.
Filia blinked. "My, how forward of you, Lina-san!" she said. "Usually, when you stay, you wait for Gourry-san to decide."
Amelia smirked, her eyes sparking. "That's because she's-"
Lina shot her the most poisonous look she could muster, Amelia went pale and backed away slowly, her hands up.
Gourry, however, was as oblivious as ever. He stood up and nodded. "The biggest guest room, right?"
Lina turned away from Amelia and nodded happily. "You got it!"
Zelgadis stood up, and Filia followed suit, realising that she was the only one not on her feet. He gave Lina an annoyed look. "Why do you get the biggest room?"
Lina stuck her tongue out at him. "Because I'm Lina Inverse," she answered, which explained nothing.
Amelia scowled at her. "I should get the biggest room because I'm the most important!"
"Pfft," Lina waved her hand at the younger girl. "Typical political self-righteousness." She brushed past everyone and darted towards the coveted guestroom.
"What did you say?!" Amelia shrieked.
Lina's cackling from the other room was the only reply. Gourry shrugged and went to join her, scratching the back of his head.
Amelia puffed out her cheeks in her anger. Zelgadis, however, did something that not only healed the anger from the past couple of days between them, but also surprised everyone who saw it.
He reached forward with both hands and pressed his palms down on Amelia's cheeks. The puff of air exploded out, making Amelia blush.
"You and I still have some things we need to discuss anyway," Zelgadis said, smiling, leaving his hands where they were.
She nodded, smiling. "Right," she agreed.
Filia smiled, clapping once. "Then, now that everyone's happy, let's get you to bed!" she pushed them out of the dining area and towards the other guestroom, once again slipping into the role of hostess.
No one expected anything less.
X X X
Despite how tired and worn out she was, Lina found herself away well into the night. Her eyes just opened, and at first, she wondered if Gourry had smacked her in the face in his sleep. However, surprisingly enough, he was mostly on his side of the bed, snoring loudly, the only thing on her side being a leg.
She frowned, chewing her lip. No, it wasn't that. Something else had woken her up, something she knew was intuition, or a premonition. Carefully, she slid out of the bed, tugged her clothes on, and slipped out of the shop, keeping her dagger in her hand.
The night was cold, and she shivered, looking around at the moonlit expanse of white before her. The snow had stuck the ground, and while it wasn't deep, it was still a nuisance to trudge through. Grumbling, Lina walked through it, letting her body guide her.
After about ten minutes of trekking, she stopped. Filia's shop backed on a few close-knit trees, not enough to call a glade, but enough to offer some cover in the sunlight. She had stopped right in front of the biggest tree, and she focused, looking around, then up.
Perched on the branches of the tree was a priest, dressed in black robes with a plain pattern design along the hems. He wore a broad smile, and his eyes were closed into crescents. His purple hair, cut across his forehead, was black in the dim light. In his hands, he held a shabby staff.
"Good evening, Lina-san," Xellos called.
Lina felt a sinking in her gut. She sighed, deeply, the sigh going through her entire body. "Hello, Xellos," she mumbled.
"My, you don't sound happy to see me," he said, sounding sulky.
Lina crossed her arms. "Usually your sudden reappearances into our lives mean trouble rather than joy," was her reply.
Xellos shrugged. "True enough," he agreed.
There was a silence. Lina didn't want to take the bait that he so annoyingly offered in front of her. It was bad enough that he was there. Besides, she could guess the reason why.
Xellos sighed, realising that he lost the battle this time. "I suppose you're wondering why I'm here," he said.
Lina smiled, leaning against the tree he was perched in. "I can take a wild guess," she admitted.
Xellos shifted in the branches. "Well, then, let me tell you a story instead," he said.
"Oh, joy," Lina slid down, sitting on the ground, leaning back against the tree. "A midnight story." Her voice was flat.
"It's closer to two, actually," Xellos chirped.
Lina rolled her eyes. "Okay, Xellos, I bite. Tell me a story." She knew she was feeding into what he wanted, but she was wide awake now. Besides, she was curious. She knew that if she ignored him, the wonder from what she missed would bug her. Who needed that kind of annoyance in their lives?
Xellos clapped once. "Wonderful." She heard him shifting again, and when she looked up, he had swung himself onto a lower branch, closer to her. She scowled at him, but he smiled back, undeterred.
"Once upon a time," Xellos began, and Lina groaned from the use of the cliché. Xellos ignored her. "There was a Dark Lord from another world. When he was born, he set a task upon himself like all good Dark Lords do, and went about creating minions for himself.
"Now, this Dark Lord wasn't the most orthodox, and some say that he was a little off in the head. No matter the reason, he created his minions in a strange manner. Using parts of himself like usual, he molded and formed his minions into strange, usable weapons, ones that could be used on his behalf, or used to destroy him.
"These minions, or weapons, could be easily dominated with the force of a person's will, to the point of utter control by the wielder.
"Now what most people don't know is that the true power of these weapons lies within, underneath the bonds and casings that entrap them. If one were to free the Mazoku from these casings, these minions, these parts of the Dark Lord, Dark Star, would be very powerful indeed. They would also be free of any control, save from their own master. Not even willpower could stop them."
Xellos went silence, so Lina spoke up. "So, while I understand most of what you said," she admitted, "there's one part that doesn't make any sense to me. Why would Dark Star imprison his minions in the first place? If they could be dominated easily when within those casings, why encase them at all?"
"Ah, only Dark Star would know that," Xellos replied. "And, like I said, he isn't the most orthodox of Dark Lords, is he?"
Lina rolled her eyes. "Way to avoid answering," she mumbled.
"Thank you!" Xellos replied happily.
Lina decided to ignore that. "So, then, what's the point, Xellos?" she wondered, giving him a glare. "We already had figured out that the sword was a Mazoku. Besides," unconsciously, her hand went to her neck, where the necklace once again hung from its chain, "the sword looks like it's broken, anyways. We can't even open it."
Xellos was quiet for a moment. When she looked up at him, he suddenly spoke. "What if, theoretically, the aspect of the weapon that controlled the Mazoku within was somehow severed? Or removed? What do you think would happen?"
Lina made a face. "Don't ask me to think, Xellos," she snapped. "Not when it's this early in the day."
Xellos chuckled. "Fair enough, Lina-san. Shall I just explain it to you, then?" He didn't wait for her to say anything. "The Mazoku would be free, Lina-san. Without the means to control it by willpower, then the Mazoku would be free to burst out on its own command."
Lina frowned. "How could a part that it was created with suddenly vanish like that?" she wondered. "Shouldn't that aspect be a part of the Mazoku in the first place?"
"These are interesting times, Lina-san," Xellos said. "With the barrier broken, new possibilities are being awakened. Things that were once kept immobile are now free to walk the lands once barred to them."
Lina got a sinking feeling when he said that. It made her think of the Five, now Three, Retainers of the Mazoku Barrier.
However, instead of speaking her thoughts, she glowered at Xellos. "Why can't you answer me straight?" she demanded.
Xellos smiled. "Where would the fun in that be?"
"Up your ass," she snapped. "Besides, while it's nice to have a bedtime story, that still doesn't explain why you're here." Her words were dripping sarcasm now. "I mean, it's nice to hear my theories confirmed, but consider the source."
Xellos looked a little hurt now. "That was harsh," he said lightly. "You act as if you're not happy to see me after all of this time!"
Lina rolled her eyes again. "And you act as if you're surprised!" she shot back.
"I am!" he said convincingly.
Lina shot him a disbelieving look. He smiled and rubbed the back of his head. "Sort of?" he added lamely.
"But you do bring up a good point," Lina acknowledged, getting to her feet slowly. She deliberately made her moves slow, drawing out the moment. "Why are you here after so long? Why have you decided to grace us with your infuriating presence? And why did you even bother going into detail about Dark Star's weapons?"
Xellos watched her, his eyes opening halfway. "I would have thought that it would be obvious," he said.
The faint glitter of purple in the night light sent a chill down Lina's spine. Sometimes, it was hard to forget who Xellos really was, especially when he went out of his way to act benign and unassuming. However, all he had to do was open his eyes, and all of those facades vanished.
Lina clenched her fists, her whole body going rigid. "You want the sword." It wasn't a question.
Xellos nodded once. "Of course I do." He smiled wider, and it was then that Lina could feel it in the air: the faint shimmer of his bloodlust.
Lina shifted, easing into a fighting position so smoothly that even Xellos wasn't sure when she had done it. She held out her hands, and from the right, a spark of light glittered to life.
Xellos suddenly leaned back on his branch, his eyes closing. The bloodlust dissipated, although Lina fancied that she could still taste it in the air.
"You're certainly not awake enough to fight me seriously," Xellos said calmly. Lina snorted, but he ignored that. "And with time, I'm sure I can convince you to give the sword to me freely." In a fluid movement, he stood up. "Until then," he sang. With a wave and a rush of displaced air, he vanished.
Lina opened her mouth to protest, but before a sound could come out, he was gone. With a growl, she let the Fireball fade.
This just got a whole lot more complicated, was her thought.
With a shout, she kicked at the tree as hard as she could. She then yelped, hoping around on one foot. When the pain eased, she stormed away, muttering under her breath the whole time.
It wasn't fair, she thought. Just when things are looking good, and just when things seem like they're all lining up and making sense, another complication came up.
Never a dull moment, she thought bitterly.
When she made it back to the room she shared with Gourry, she stood in the middle of the room, her eyes on the sleeping swordsman. She thought about waking him up to talk about it, and she knew that it would be the right thing to do, but something stopped her. She would regret it in the morning, when he whined at her for not waking him, but at that moment, she just wanted to pretend that things hadn't just got worse.
As she crawled in beside Gourry, she wondered what Xellos had meant: 'I'm sure I can convince you to give the sword to me freely.' Meaning what?
She stewed about it for a while, the covers held right up to her chin, before her previous exhaustion caught up to her again, and she drifted off, silently hoping that the whole thing had been a dream.
